INDEX   ALCOHOL & ALCOHOLISM     Physiologic Effects:     Ethyl alcohol, whether in its pure state or in the form of alcoholic   beverages (ranging from 3.2 to 50% ) is rapidly absorbed from the   stomach and intestines.  It is carried by the blood to the liver, where   nearly all of it is broken down (oxidized) into other substances. How-   ever, a small part is excreted, as alcohol,  in the urine, saliva and   breath. The first break-down product of alcohol is acetaldyhyde.   This substance is then converted to acetic acid which may be used   in this form or may be broken down further.     Alcohol depresses the central nervous system. At first the inhibitory   functions of the Brain are depressed, next the intellectual functions,   then the sensory and reflex activities, then the motor functions. If   poisonous amounts are ingested, the vital nerve centers of respiration   and circulation in the medulla oblongata can be depressed,  resulting   in death.     The apparent stimulating action of alcohol on the brain is an illusion.   Since alcohol depresses the highest cerebral centers ( controlling   such factors as judgment,  sense of responsibility, and moral integrity)   it releases the lower centers from inhibitions.  The alcoholized person   becomes talkative,  rambunctious, excited or even violent, and so   appears to be stimulated.  Alcohol Stimulation is really the first sign   of depression. No amount of alcohol stimulates intellectual functions.     Because their nerve cells become more resistant to its effects, some   people build up a tolerance to alcohol. In such cases, greater amounts    of alcohol may be ingested without a noticeable reaction. On the other   hand, many individuals are never able to tolerate  even comparatively   small amounts of alcohol.     Alcoholic indulgence may produce a slight increase in heart rate, a   slight increase in blood pressure, and a fuller radial pulse.  These    effects are mostly reflex nature and may be produced following the   introduction of any irritant liquid into the stomach.  The flushing and   redness of the skin accompanied by  feeling of warmth, however, are   due to the action of alcohol on the nervous system, which stimulates   the dilation of the blood vessels in the skin.                              ********MEDICAL USES********     While there is little disagreement about the value of alcohol for   external medicinal uses, the indications for its internal uses are not   well defined. Alcohol is not used as an anesthetic during  surgical   operations because much better agents are available and because the   margin between the anesthetic dose and the fatal dose of alcohol is                                   ***** too narrow for safety*****   Small or moderate amounts of alcohol may aid the onset of sleep,   stimulate digestion, or cause perspiration in chills and colds; but for   any of these purposes better and less habit-forming agents are    available.  ******************************   Also, Alcohol increases the secretion of saliva and gastric juices,   particularly that of "Hydrochloric Acid".  It also increases the out-   put of urine. Although some temporary liver damage is occassionally   produced by strong and improperly aged liqours, there is no definite   proof "hobnail" liver, or liver cirrhosis, is actually produced by   alcohol alone.  It is more probable that dietary deficiencies that  accompany the chronic use of alcohol are the chief contributing factors   to this Disease. The Medical Term is ****DIPSOMANIA****   ****CLINICAL EFFECTS***     Alcoholic intoxication, depending on its severity and the personality   patterns of the individual affected,  is manifested by symptoms which   range from mildly exaggerated effect and disorganization of activity   to marked impairment of sensory functions, slurred or   incomprehensible speech, confusion of thought, and progressive inco-   ordination of movement (((ATAXIA))).   In acute pathologic intoxication, delusion of injury or persecution   (often sexual or homosexual) may appear, and behavior may become   impulsive, violent, and dangerous.   In  ***Delirium Tremens"***,  fearfully vivid hallucinations of sound,   hearing,  touch, or taste may occur and contribute to a state of un-   restrainable  panic.   ***KORSAKOFF PSYCHOSIS*** in chronic alcoholism is   characterized by a progressive impairment of memory and other   intellectual capacities, a tendency to pointless, fantastic outpouring   of speech, deterioration of personal habits, and disturbances of  peripheral nerve function (((polyneuritis))). In more advanced alcoholic   poisoning, serious pathologic degeneration of the brain may occur  (((((((((((((((((((((((( WERNICKE'S ENCEPHALITIS)))))))))))))))))))))))