The Central App takes a look at alcohol, what it is, why we’re encouraging teens to delay drinking it, and why we should also be taking a look at our own drinking habits.

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We’ve got ‘The Plan’ coming to Central as a tool to help delay teen drinking and Dry July is just around the corner. So what exactly is alcohol, and why all the fuss?

Alcohol is a psychoactive drug that has been consumed by most cultures, for most of our human history. Chemical evidence from fragments of pottery in China suggests that humans began brewing alcoholic drinks at least 9,000 years ago.

When we learn chemistry at school, we are taught that alcohol refers to a class of organic compounds that include a hydroxyl group – consisting of an oxygen atom and a hydrogen atom – bonded to a carbon atom. 

In short, the word ‘alcohol’ usually refers to a specific chemical with the formula C2H5OH, which chemists call ethanol.

Homer Simpson famously described alcohol as “the cause of and solution to all of life’s problems”.

While not entirely accurate, it does point to alcohol’s ability to make us feel either very good or very bad. Who we are, the amount of alcohol we consume and our social context all play a role in determining what effects it can have on us.

In a summary of current evidence, Te Hiringa Hauora says over 80% of New Zealand adults drink alcohol, with one in four of those who drink doing so at hazardous levels.

The risk of mental distress has also been found to be almost four times higher for people who drink heavily compared to those who do not.

Low-level drinkers are more likely to start drinking more if they experience mental distress. Heavy drinkers are likely to continue drinking at high levels if they experience mental distress.

The evidence is clear: delaying the age at which you start drinking alcohol is best both physically and mentally.

So, what effect does alcohol actually have on us?

Alcohol is absorbed into the blood, where it has an immediate effect on our central nervous system, affecting the brain’s ability to function. At low levels, alcohol typically makes us feel relaxed, animated and less inhibited. It can also impair coordination and judgement, which is why it is considered unsafe to drive after drinking alcohol.

Alcohol also affects the regulation of body fluids, causing people to urinate more and become dehydrated.

As more alcohol is consumed, emotions, learning, memory, attention, and mood are all affected, and it becomes harder to think clearly.

The part of the brain responsible for problem-solving and decision-making is also significantly affected by alcohol. This may cause loss of control, aggression, difficulty finding alternatives to risky behaviours, and a tendency toward impulsive behaviour.

A very high blood alcohol level can cause people to pass out and potentially stop breathing.

Alcohol exerts such a wide range of effects because it interacts with many different receptors on our brain cells.

It mimics the action of GABA, an inhibitory neurotransmitter in the brain, sedating us, making us feel relaxed. It also lowers the activity of glutamate, an excitatory neurotransmitter.

In addition, alcohol activates the reward system of the brain, triggering the release of dopamine and serotonin, making even small drinks of alcohol feel pleasurable.

According to the World Health Organisation, each year over 3 million deaths worldwide are attributed to alcohol. The WHO has also classified alcohol as a group 1 carcinogen – the same category as asbestos and tobacco.

In an article published in the British Medical Journal in 2018, researchers said even when small amounts of alcohol are consumed, they found a dose-related increase in the prevalence of several cancers.

An interesting fact about alcohol is it can have either stimulant or sedative effects. This means that alcohol can make both sleep and pain better or worse depending on the individual, the circumstances, and their drinking behaviours.

For example, in the short-term, alcohol might help you go to sleep but then go on to cause sleep-related problems such as difficulties falling asleep, feeling sleepy during the day, or waking up during the night. The negative impacts of alcohol on sleep are even more pronounced for anyone with depression.

The teenage years are a time when diagnosable mental distress often starts, and young people experiment with substances. Alcohol misuse alongside mental distress can be as high as 53% among those attending youth-specific alcohol and other drug services.

It is estimated that eliminating alcohol misuse could mean rates of mental distress decrease by up to 15% among our youth.

Alcohol affects brain function, and for young people, high levels of consumption occur at a time when the brain is still developing. This means that adolescent brains are more vulnerable to the effects of alcohol, with impacts on decision-making abilities, personality, and regulating feelings. 

The evidence is also growing that alcohol impacts not only brain function, but also brain structure.

This is why ‘The Plan’ was developed as a positive tool to support parents help their teens to delay when they start drinking alcohol and allow their brains to fully develop first.

For all of us, even a short break from alcohol consumption: be it a month, as promoted by the Dry July campaign, or just by introducing alcohol-free days, can have a myriad of mental and physical health benefits.

LINKS TO HEALTH AND WELL BEING RESOURCES ON THE APP

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