A Speech on the Effects of Excessive Consumption of Alcohol

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A Speech on the Effects of Excessive Consumption of Alcohol

“The Guest of Honor, invitees, ladies and gentlemen, good afternoon? It is my humble submission today to share on one of the most contentious and extensively spoken issues in our society. Alcohol consumption is a subject with several impacts. The fact that alcohol consumption is widely discussed implies that it bears weight not only in our social-economic lives, but also in our daily practices of nation-building. Therefore, we need to find a way of moderating the effects of excessive consumption of alcohol.

To begin with, I will take you through the various effects of excessive alcohol consumption on your body and life. Alcohol is a drug which alters your physiologic ability to think, see things clearly and act accordingly. There are numerous health disorders associated with excessive alcohol consumption; the hazards are either short-term or chronic. The CDC has enumerated some of these effects in its websites (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 1).

Among the short term health hazards associated with alcohol include unintentional injuries such as traffic injuries caused by impaired sight. A number of road accidents have been linked to excessive alcohol consumption. In 2006 alone, the National Highway Traffic Administration approximated 17, 941 deaths related to alcohol abuse and close to 275,000 injuries caused by collisions from alcohol use. These figures represent close to 40% of the total deaths in the USA (McGovern and White 86).

There is increased violence resulting from alcohol use. Most of these cases involve close family members or friends. According to CDC, alcohol is among the leading causes of child-mistreatment and neglect. About 35% of violence victims report that the abuses occur when the perpetrators are intoxicated. According to TAADAS, a woman is assaulted every 15 seconds in the USA, by a boyfriend, live-in partner or a husband. Women within the age bracket of 15-44 years are mostly vulnerable to domestic violence. While national statistics on violence are sourced from the FBI, or emergency reports, most women report violence cases to friends, churches, mosques or synagogues. Sexual assault is another form of violence ((TAADAS 1).

Excessive alcohol consumption in pregnant women can lead to abortion or fetal alcohol syndrome. CDC states that miscarriages and stillbirths are common happenings in pregnant women who consume excessive quantities of alcohol. Alcohol has the power to cross the placenta into the developing fetus. The fetus, therefore, develops a pattern of mental and physical deficiencies. In the USA and Europe, the prevalence rate for fetal alcohol syndrome is approximately 0.2-2 for every 1000 live births (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 1).

The effects of excessive alcohol are quite many. Chronic alcohol use is even more fatal than short-term use. It results to the development of many chronic disorders, neurotoxicity, as well as social problems. Heavy drinking is implicated in decreased number of red blood cells that responsible for carrying oxygen around the body. This will in turn lead to anemia, which can aggravate a number of symptoms such as fatigue, lightheadedness, dyspnea (shortness of breath), et cetera (Dawson, Grant and Li 902-908)..............