ABSTRACT
Alcoholism, an addiction to alcohol resulting in heavy and frequent drinking, is a major public health issue, with a cost to society exceeding that of all other drugs of abuse combined. Alcoholic beverages contain water, ethanol, variable amounts of carbohydrate, and little else of nutritive value. Carbonated beverages speed up passage of the stomach’s contents into the small intestine, where absorption is most rapid. Nutritional therapy also includes micronutrients. Thiamine deficiency is presumed in alcoholics, and, unless the deficiency has been excluded, 50 mg of thiamine per day should be given. Experimentally, silymarin exerts hepatoprotective actions through free radical scavenging and immunomodulatory effects. The acute neurologic effects of alcohol intoxication are dose-related, progressing from euphoria, relief from anxiety and removal of inhibitions to ataxia, impairment of vision, judgment, reasoning, and muscle control. Chronic alcohol use can reduce blood flow and oxygen to the brain and may result in blacking out.
