Alcohol the legal killer Essay Example for Free

Alcohol the legal killer Essay Alcohol is an ordinary name for a substance which is chemically known as ethyl alcohol, pure spirits or grain alcohol. Ethyl alcohol is a kind of wine which is produced for medical and other purposes. Alcohol drink is every beverage that has ethyl alcohol intoxicating quantities. The amount of pure alcohol must not exceed more than two percent in beers and not more than sixty eight percent in absinthe. Alcohol is legally allowed to produce and sale in the most of the countries of the world particularly in the western countries. Alcohol is not much dangerous for the drunken person if it is taken in low quantities but it will be more dangerous to life it will be used in bulk and on a regular basis. Alcohol is the part of culture in many countries like India and Australia but it is a silent killer and legal killer because of its negative effects. People like to drink for relaxation, socialization, celebration and taste but most of people lose balance in drinking then travel on the path which goes to death. Alcohol is legally allowed in many countries for drinking but there are some conditions on its usage like a person cannot drink more than a specific amount of alcohol and no one can drive a vehicle if he or she has drunk. But these conditions are not discouraging the use of alcohol as it is also a form of drugs like heroin, opium, hash and cocaine. All these drugs are dangerous for life so all are banned on all countries of the world but the only drug which is legally permissible for producing, selling and using all over the world. In other words it is a license to kill the humanity for its manufactures and sellers. Alcohol has many drawbacks and it is very harmful and fatal for human beings so it should also be banned like other drugs. Every year alcohol related problems are being recorded by US Department of Justice which includes physical violence, domestic abuse. Alcohol- related crimes in the U. S. account for 54% of murder and attempted murder, 68% of manslaughters, 52% of rape and sexual assaults, 48% of robberies, and 40,000 babies are born with birth defects. (cdc) In 2000 19,358 alcohol induced deaths occurred not including motor vehicle deaths, 26, 552 deaths from chronic liver disease, and cirrhosis, which are the 12th leading cause of death in the U. S. (cdc). In spite of all this alcohol is still legal and much abused, with 103 million people in the U. S. currently drinking and 11 million of those heavy drinkers. Everyone have different response for drinking alcohol so it is not sure for saying that what a specific number of drinks a man can on daily basis. Alcohol has many side effects on psychologically and physically. Psychologically it can have these effects like confusion, unsteady manner due to mental illness, and disorientation. First let’s find out that how does alcohol is being digested by our body and how does it affect us, there are three stages of ingestion that happen once a drink is downed. First, it is quickly absorbed into the blood stream through the cell membranes of the digestive tract. As it passes through the digestive tract, some of is absorbed by the mouth and stomach, and most of it is absorbed by the small intestine. The amount of food in the stomach affects the rate of absorption. If a drinker has a pint of beer without having dinner first, the absorption rate of the beer will be much faster. The drinker will get drunk much faster, and maybe even vomit. Most of the alcohol is absorbed by the bloodstream within an hour of ingestion. The second stage is distribution. Once the circulatory system absorbs the alcohol, it is sent out to all parts of the body. Some parts, like the brain, liver and kidney receive larger amounts of alcohol than other parts of the body because they receive more blood. And the third stage is metabolism. As the alcohol travels throughout the body, enzymes released by the liver metabolize the alcohol. This breaks down the alcohol and turns it into a food source for the body. Most of the alcohol ingested is released through the liver. The effects of alcohol on the liver can be deadly. In large amounts, alcohol can damage major organs, particularly the liver. There are three different alcohol-related liver diseases: fatty liver disease, alcoholic hepatitis, and cirrhosis. Fatty liver disease is one of the first signs that alcohol is being abused. Fat builds up due to alcohol metabolism. This hurts the liver’s ability to work at full strength. Fatty liver disease can lead to cirrhosis of the liver. When the liver is too damaged from alcohol abuse, scar tissue forms causing cirrhosis, and eventually causing the liver to shut down. Symptoms include loss of energy, loss of appetite, upset stomach, weight loss and weakness. Cirrhosis is one of the ten leading causes of death by disease in the United States. The third liver disease, alcoholic hepatitis, is the inflammation of the liver, the stage right before cirrhosis. Jaundice, mental confusion and swelling of the abdomen are common symptoms (NIH). Alcohol is known as a depressant, and its effects on the brain and central nervous system are serious. When intoxicated, drinkers experience a mild euphoria, or temporary â€Å"happiness†, and loss of inhibition. Alcohol impairs regions of the brain controlling behavior, judgment, memory, concentration and coordination. On the central nervous system, alcohol acts as a sedative. Large amounts of alcohol can cause respiratory failure, coma and death. Impaired vision, hearing, and motor skills also occur. The drinker may also experience numbness and tingling in the arms and legs caused by nerve damage. This will result in the staggering walk often seen coming out of bars. Long-term drinking can cause brain damage and drinking while pregnant is known to produce sick babies. Heavy drinking also has damaging effects on the stomach and intestinal system. Irritation of the stomach lining can cause peptic ulcers, bleeding lesions and cancer. Blood loss causes loss of iron, which can cause irritability, lack of energy, headaches and dizziness. Risk of pancreatitis is also increased. Other effects of alcohol abuse include irritation of the intestinal tract lining and the colon; nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, sweating and loss of appetite; and increase in blood pressure, risk of heart attack and stroke, and these symptoms develop over time. Alcoholism, however, can begin to develop after the first drink. When we think about effects of alcohol, you may think about physical effects alcohol has on our body as I explained above, but beside all these physical effects there are many psychological effects of alcohol on the body as well that you may not have thought of. In many cases, the psychological effects of alcohol are much more damaging and painful to you than the effects that you already know about. Heres a look at some of the psychological effects of alcohol on our body: Depression – As I also mentioned above that alcohol is depressant. This means that once it begins circulating in the system, it will decrease the activity within the nervous system of your brain. For this reason as you drink alcohol, you may notice that you start to have more feelings of depression or become entrenched in a depression as a result of the drinking. Many make the mistake of thinking they can drown their sorrows by drinking more, and make the feelings of sadness and uselessness go away. If this describes you, what you dont realize is you are just making the situation worse and causing your depression to become deeper and last longer. Anxiety If you are like a lot of people, as you consume large amounts of alcohol you will become stressed from the impact of the drug. While you may find the buzz from the alcohol enjoyable for a while, it will give way to a series of stresses on your system that will manifest psychologically. From a general feeling of discontent to restlessness, nightmares and even overwhelming fear, there are a number of feelings of anxiety that can come of your alcohol usage. Personality Changes Have you noticed your family members are treating you differently? It may be because you have changed in how you interact with them. Alcohol can make massive personality that you may not even see. Once you become intoxicated, what were your usual personality traits may change dramatically. You may become selfish, egotistical or even angry about your life and everything in it. Aggression and mood swings are some of the most common traits. These changes are brought on by the alcohols effect on serotonin in your body. Serotonin is a chemical in your body that transmits signals relating to mood to your brain. When its job is weakened by alcohol, moods and emotions can get out of control. Another common personality change brought on by alcohol is a deterioration of morals. As alcohol affects the body, it acts to slow the responses of the synapses in the brain. This slowing down of the brains circuitry decreases thinking and reasoning. For this reason, when you are intoxicated, you may be willing to do and say things you would not usually do or say if you were thinking clearly. Obsession Once you become dependent on alcohol (whether you realize it or not), you will start to become obsessed with drinking. While many think a few drinks are not dangerous, to someone who is alcohol dependent or becoming alcohol dependent, there is no difference between getting those next few drinks, and a drug addict who is looking for their next hit. Your obsession can lead to a loss of other interests in your life and a focus only on how you are going to get another drink, while all along denying there is a problem with your desire for alcohol. Generally, you will not realize you are being pulled in to an obsession until it is too late. Denial Just as you would expect in any other type of addict, those who drink a lot of alcohol go through a number of denial issues. If you have heard from those who you love that you may be drinking too much, you really should listen to them. Often, you will not even notice you are becoming more and more intoxicated on a regular basis, because you are too close to the problem. Alcohol dependency is a progressive illness and you may not be able to see what it is doing to you. Just like any other disease, alcohol dependency is a progressive disease. The longer and more you drink, the more pronounced the effects will be on your system. Additionally, these psychological effects of alcohol are not just felt while you are drinking, or the morning after. They can continue for a number of days or weeks after you have consumed the alcohol. The third effect of alcoholism is can be said as economic, beside the physical and psychological effects of alcohol, excessive drinking of alcohol affects the economy of the a society in different ways . According to Center for Disease Control and Prevention the cost of excessive alcohol consumption in the United States in 2006 reached $223. 5 billion or about $1. 90 per drink. Researchers also found that the cost largely resulted from losses in workplace productivity (72 percent of the total cost), health care expenses for problems caused by excessive drinking (11 percent of the total cost), law enforcement and other criminal justice expenses related to excessive alcohol consumption (9 percent of the total cost), and motor vehicle crash costs from impaired driving (6 percent of the total cost). The study did not consider a number of other costs such as those due to pain and suffering by the excessive drinker or others who were affected by the drinking, and thus may be an underestimate. Researchers estimated that excessive drinking cost $746 per person in the United States in 2006 (CDC). Lastly it can be said that alcohol has many physical, economical and psychological effects which in simple words cause of many problems that have impacts on different aspect of life. But the real problem is that it is a legal killer which is allowed by law of countries. If we think it is also a drug among other drugs which are legally prohibited and discouraged by the law as law has some punishment for using and selling those drugs but alcohol has no legal restriction on its consumptions and business as it is one of the top profiteering business in the world. Works Cited Adams, Gabriel J. What Are The Effects Of Alcohol Addiction? 2013. 4 May 2013 . Ricky Gates. WordPress. com Get a Free Blog Here. The RickyRay Show. WordPress. com, 26 Nov 2009. Web. 12 May 2013. . Buddy, T. The Effects of Alcohol and Drug Abuse. 4 May 2013 .. , NIAH. Alcohol and Health. National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA). NIAH, 8 Apr 2008. Web. 15 May 2013. .CDC. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Economic costs of alcohol abuse. CDC, 7 2012. Web. 15 May 2013. .

Stress Types Essay -- Papers Exploratory Stressing Problems Essays

Stress Types There are three types of stress that will be explained. At various times in our lives, one or more of these stresses may overcome us. The first of these is ?Type A? stress, which is both foreseeable and avoidable. For example, going on a roller coaster is both foreseeable and avoidable, thus, it is considered a ?Type A? stress. A ?Type B? stress is defined as something that is neither foreseeable nor avoidable. A good example of this is being hit by a baseball while watching the game. The last type of these stresses is called ?Type C? stress, and is defined as stress that is foreseeable, but not avoidable. A good example of this would be a teenager staying out too late and knowing that when she comes home, she will get into trouble with her parents. At certain times in our life, such as marriage, we may be confronted with ?Type A? stress (foreseeable and avoidable). We know, of course, that when we get married, we will have to endure this added stress. It is foreseeable because we know whether or not we will ask someone to marry us. It is avoidable because you ...

Macbeth: Act 5 Summary Essay

Scene I A doctor and gentlewoman are at the castle watching Lady MacBeth because she has been sleeping walking. When Lady MacBeth enters the scene she washes her hands saying there is blood on them and refers to the murders: Duncan, Banquo, and Lady MacDuff. Once she leaves the doctor looks stunned at such behavior. Scene II A group of Scottish lords gather together to discuss the military situation. It is decided that the Scottish army will meet the English army led by Malcolm by Birnam Wood to join forces together. It is also reported that MacBeth has fortified Dunsinane Castle. Scene III MacBeth tells his attendants they have nothing to fear of the army approaching them because no one of woman born can harm him. MacBeth also refers to the second apparition and says he will reign until Birnam Wood is moved to Dunsinane. Next, MacBeth orders Seyton to retrieve his armor so he can do what he does best, fight on the battlefield. The doctor reports to MacBeth about Lady MacBeth’s condition. MacBeth demands that the doctor rid her of the disease and cure her. Scene IV While marching toward Dunsinane, Malcolm orders his soldiers to break a branch off of a tree in Birnam Wood hope to, â€Å"Thereby shall we shadow / The numbers of our host,† and make MacBeth’s spies, â€Å"Err in report of us,† (5.4.5-7). Scene V Seyton comes to tell MacBeth that the queen has died. Shocked by the abrupt end of his wife, MacBeth makes a compelling spiel. The messenger enters telling MacBeth that the forest of Birnam Wood is moving towards them, Dunsinane. MacBeth is overcame by disbelief and horror that the apparition’s prophecy may come true which said that he couldn’t die until Birnam Wood moved towards Dunsinane. Scene VI Malcolm orders his soldiers to throw down the branches and reveal to MacBeth’s castle who they really are. Scene VII MacBeth kills the Young Siward and makes fun of the soldiers who are born from a woman because their swords can not kill him. Malcolm makes a comment about MacBeth’s soldiers saying, â€Å"We have met with foes / That strike beside us,† because they aren’t even trying to fight (5.7.31-2). Scene VIII The castle is surrounded by Malcolm and Siward’s men. MacDuff finally finds MacBeth and the fight begins. While fighting, MacBeth tells MacDuff he is wasting his time because he cannot be killed by a woman born human. MacDuff shocks MacBeth by letting him know he was not woman born but cut out of his mother’s womb. MacBeth still does not give up and they continue fighting. As trumpets sound victory of the Scottish and English forces, MacDuff enters carrying MacBeth’s head and declared Malcolm King of Scotland.

Biography of Jesse Owens 4 Time Olympic Gold Medalist

During the 1930s, the Great Depression, Jim Crow Era laws, and de facto segregation kept African-Americans in the United States fighting for equality. In Eastern Europe, the Jewish Holocaust was well underway with German ruler Adolf Hitler spearheading a Nazi Regime.   In 1936, the Summer Olympics were to be played in Germany. Hitler saw this as an opportunity to show the inferiority of non-Aryans. Yet, a young track and field star from Cleveland, Ohio had other plans.   His name was Jesse Owens and by the end of the Olympics, hed won four gold medals and refuted Hitlers propaganda.   Accomplishments   First American to win four Olympic gold medalsEarned  an honorary doctorate of athletic arts from Ohio State University in 1973. The University awarded Owens with this doctorate for   his unparalleled skill and ability as an athlete and for his personification of sportsmanship ideals.1976 Presidential Medal of Freedom awarded by President Gerald Ford. Early Life On September 12, 1913, James Cleveland â€Å"Jesse† Owens was born. Owens’ parents, Henry and Mary Emma were sharecroppers who raised 10 children in Oakville, Ala. By 1920s the Owens family was participating in the Great Migration and settled in Cleveland, Ohio. A Track Star Is Born Owenss interest in running track came while attending middle school. His gym teacher, Charles Riley, encouraged Owens to join the track team. Riley taught Owens to train for longer races such as the 100 and 200-yard dashes. Riley continued to work with Owens while he was a high school student. With Riley’s guidance, Owens was able to win every race he entered. By 1932, Owens was preparing to try out for the U.S. Olympic Team and compete at the Summer Games in Los Angeles. Yet at the Midwestern preliminary trials, Owens was defeated in the 100-meter dash, the 200-meter dash as well as the long jump.   Owens did not allow this loss to defeat him. In his senior year of high school, Owens was elected president of the student council and captain of the track team. That year, Owens also placed first in 75 out of 79 races he entered. He also set a new record in the long jump at the interscholastic state finals. His biggest victory came when he won the long jump, setting a world record in the 220-yard dash and also tied a world record in the 100-yard dash. When Owens returned to Cleveland, he was greeted with a victory parade.   Ohio State University: Student and Track Star   Owens chose to attend Ohio State University where he could continue to train and work part-time as a freight elevator operator at the State House. Barred from living in OSU’s dormitory because he was African-American, Owens lives in a boarding house with other African-American students. Owens trained with Larry Snyder who helped the runner perfect his starting time and altering his long-jump style. In May 1935, Owens set world records in the 220-yard dash, the 220-yard low hurdles as well as the long jump at the Big Ten Finals held in Ann Arbor, Mich.   1936 Olympics   In 1936, James â€Å"Jesse† Owens arrived at the Summer Olympics ready to compete. Hosted in Germany at the height of Hitler’s Nazi Regime, the games were filled with controversy. Hitler wanted to use the games for Nazi propaganda and to promote â€Å"Aryan racial superiority.† Owens’ performance at the 1936 Olympics refuted all of Hitler’s propaganda. On August 3, 1936, Owners won the 100m sprint. The following day, he won the gold medal for the long jump. On August 5, Owens won the 200m sprint and finally, on August 9 he was added the 4 x 100m relay team.   Life After the Olympics   Jesse Owens returned home to the United States with not much fanfare. President Franklin D. Roosevelt never met with Owens, a tradition usually afforded Olympic champions. Yet Owens was not surprised by the lackluster celebration saying, When I came back to my native country, after all the stories about Hitler, I couldnt ride in the front of the bus†¦.I had to go to the back door. I couldnt live where I wanted. I wasnt invited to shake hands with Hitler, but I wasnt invited to the White House to shake hands with the president, either. Owens found work racing against cars and horses. He also played for the Harlem Globetrotters. Owens later found success in the field of marketing and spoke at conventions and business meetings. Personal Life and Death   Owens married Minnie Ruth Solomon in 1935. The couple had three daughters. Owens died of lung cancer on March 31, 1980, at his home in Arizona.