Alcohol abuse can cause significant nutritional deficiencies for two main reasons. Firstly, individuals that abuse alcohol tend to obtain much of their energy needs from alcohol and their behaviour to find, consume and recover from drinking alcohol tends to negate time they might otherwise spend eating or preparing food. As a result alcoholics tend to have nutrient poor diets that contain empty calories supplied mainly from alcohol. In addition, alcohol can prevent the absorption of many nutrients and at the same time increase excretion rates, and these factors increase the risk of obtaining a vitamin deficiency. In alcoholics, one of the most likely deficiencies has been shown to be for thiamine, which can result in the development of beriberi, a form of neurological disorder.
As thiamine deficiency worsens, the neurological changes characteristic of beriberi can deteriorate into the development of Wernicke’s encephalopathy, a disorder of the brain that results in ocular mobility problems such as nystagmus and ophthalmoplegia, ataxia, as well as confusion, drowsiness and coma. When alcohol intakes are high and thiamine intakes are low, the development of Wernicke’s encephalopathy can be reasonably common. And can lead to long term brain damage if drinking continues. Alongside Wernicke’s encephalopathy, Korsakoff’s psychosis can also be present, which is characterised by anterograde and retrograde amnesia, disorientation, poor recall, impairment of recent memory and confabulation. The development of both conditions results in a condition known as Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome, which can be effectively treated with high dose thiamine therapy, which reverses the neurological problems.
Eat Well, Stay Healthy, Protect Yourself
RdB
