Chronic Diseases

• Alcohol abuse has been associated with such diseases as cirrhosis of the liver, inflammation of the pancreas, or pancreatitis, gouty arthritis and high blood pressure. Alcohol consumption enlarges the kidneys and can lead to kidney failure. Alcoholic hepatitis is an inflammation of the liver that leads to fatty liver, the early stage of liver deterioration that ultimately results in death of the liver's cells. The final stage of liver deterioration is cirrhosis, and it can be fatal.
  
  

Cancer

• Various forms of cancer have been associated with excessive alcohol intake, including cancers of the mouth, throat, larynx and esophagus. Excessive alcohol consumption also increases the risk of pancreatic, rectal and breast cancer. Alcohol may affect the liver's ability to metabolize cancer-causing substances and thus lead to liver cancer.
  
  

Fetal Injury

• Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders are various conditions that occur in a child if the mother drank alcohol while she was pregnant. The alcohol can cause harm to the developing fetus. These physical and behavioral conditions can include short height and low body weight, slow speech and language development, poor coordination, hyperactivity and learning disabilities, hearing or vision problems and heart or kidney ailments, and possibly sudden infant death syndrome, of SIDS.
  
  

Heart Problems

• Drinking large quantities of alcohol can lead to high cholesterol as well as to cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, stroke and heart failure. Alcohol misuse can also lead to abnormal heartbeat and sudden death.
  
  

Malnutrition

• Excessive alcohol consumption can depress the appetite, causing heavy drinkers to ignore proper nutrition. While alcohol is high in calories, it contains no nutrients. Alcohol interferes with the drinker's metabolism, and the nutritional deficiencies leave the body less able to fight off infection and illness. Conversely, the caloric content of alcoholic beverages can lead to obesity and high risk of diabetes.
  
  

Other Problems

• Alcohol misuse can cause nervous disorders, dementia, imbalance and memory impairment as well as such psychological disturbances as depression, insomnia and anxiety.