The overall amount of deaths by the affects of alcohol is about 100,000!!! Every sip of that poisonous drink, every taste of the bitter liquid, your body gets more and more unhealthy. So why are Americans drinking a great deal of alcohol? Many people aren’t even drinking to relax and kick back. They’re drinking to get drunk. Drinking a less amount of alcohol would solve many problems in the U.S.A. such as drunk driving, obesity, bad decisions, and serious health problems because alcohol destroys our bodies and causes the human body to get out of control.

To begin with, how is drinking alcohol any different from having a glass of water, lemonade, or even non-alcoholic drinks? Sure, saying you had a beer or wine may seem cool around your friends, but here’s the problem: The U.S. Department of Transportation concluded that there had been 32,788 drunk driving deaths in the past year. 1,180 of those casualties were teens. Plus, 47 occurred in Wyoming. Alcohol is so flammable that it could be used as fuel! Put that poison in your vehicle, not you!

The ingredients of alcohol sound good, but they will do terrible things to our bodies. Craig Freudenrich, Ph.D. at howstuffwork.com explained that in the year of 1997, the average U.S. person drank two gallons of the intoxicating liquid per person. (That equals out to a 6-pack of beer, 2 glasses of wine, and 3-4 mixed drinks per week!!!) Doctor Freudenrich stated that alcohol is made of fermentation (fruit and grains), chemical modification of fossil fuels, and chemical combination of hydrogen with carbon monoxide. This means that the greater concentration of these ingredients will result in a faster and stronger absorption time.

There are six levels of intoxication that get worse and worse as the number goes up. The first, Euphoria (0.03 - 0.12) causes your body to get flushed, more daring, you can’t write, and you may get a bit loopy. Next, is Excitement (0.09 - 0.25). This stage will produce drowsiness, memory loss, no reactions, loss of vision, and senses go bad. Third, the Confusion stage (0.18 - 0.30) will result in bad confusion, dizziness, staggering, drowsiness, and you can’t speak correctly. From this point, the only thing that can happen is bad! Stupor, Coma, or even Death, (0.25 and above) could create loss of breath, unconsciousness, and more! (This theory was explained by Craig Freudenrich, Ph.D.) Do any of these affects seem fun to have?

A lot of peoples’ excuses for drinking is to relieve stress and just to let loose with friends, but how is this possible when every sip is destroying your body? Just to watch people drink and turn themselves into someone they aren’t is a disturbing thing to see. What is it like being the one everyone is watching? If you are that person, you wouldn’t remember a thing, anyway. Alcohol acts on the nerve and brain cells and also interferes with communication cells. Plus, drinks ruin your cerebal/cortex, the part in your brain that processes information and helps solve problems.

Alcohol is a life-ruining liquid that will tear apart any dreams, family, businesses, or friendships. It DOES NOT look cool. It DOES NOT relieve stress (It creates even more). It DOES kill you! Perhaps we should consider having the same drinks- except non-alcoholic. Or even try to have the will-power to say NO!

From drinking worthy amounts of alcohol, depression, irritation in the stomach and intestinal lining, more blood to skin (sweat), and less blood to the muscles will occur. Long term effects are death, liver disease, your brain decreases in size, stomach and intestine ulcers, blood pressure increase, poor levels of iron and vitamin, and plenty more! Wikipedia showed that some of these terrible things attacked these celebrities- John Barrymore, Amy Winehouse, David Woodley, Lester Young, and James Thurber were all killed by some alcohol-related disease or sickness.

The National Center for Health Statistics researched and found that 60% of U.S. drinkers are considered obese. Does this number surprise you? Not only does alcohol consumption ruin your body on the inside where people can’t see it, but also on the outside. What will people think of you?

The next time you are offered a drink or even think about having one, consider this: alcohol is not good, cool, or helpful. It will destroy your life and body. It is no different from having a glass of water or non-alcoholic drink. Plus, drinking to get drunk or drinking for fun is no different. They are both terrible actions. Make your life the best and drink less!!!