One fascinating simulation shows the mind-blowing changes your body undergoes when you stop drinking alcohol, and it might make you want to give a try next time you feel like having a drink.
Alcohol is something that millions of people across the world consume on a regular basis, and in most cases it's considered to be a relatively harmless habit that isn't too damaging to your health.
While some doctors have urged people to cut alcoholic drinks out of their life after reaching a certain age, it's not something that – if consumed in moderation – will do you too much harm in the long run, as long as you're careful with it.
It can become incredibly dangerous in excess though, and alcoholism can lead to a number of worrying health conditions and eventually death at an alarming rate, and one informative simulation shows exactly why you might want to consider slowing down your intake.
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As shared by The Infographics Show on YouTube, the video details the various benefits that your body will receive over time when you stop drinking alcohol, while also going into how it affects your body when you drink it.
Ultimately, alcohol (or ethanol if you consider it plainly) is a toxin that affects your brain and your body when you consume it, and this can have a particularly worrying effect on your brain, liver, and kidneys.
Drunkenness, for example, is caused by ethanol binding to receptors in your brain, including glutamate neurotransmitters that lower the response rate to various stimuli and slow the rate at which your brain functions.
It'll take around six hours for your body to completely break down the ethanol that you've consumed, and this can often interrupt your sleep by increasing alpha wave patterns that otherwise only occur when you're awake, effectively tricking your body into thinking it doesn't need rest.
Not drinking for six to twelve hours will start to show positive effects in your body, including strengthening your immune system, but within 24 hours withdrawal symptoms such as cold sweats, increased pulse, nausea, and anxiety can really kick in.
These withdrawals are not something to take lightly, as depending on the amount of alcohol you regularly consume they can even cause seizures and put yourself at risk of death, so while cutting out alcohol is a good thing, it's not necessarily always the best idea to go completely cold turkey.
Within three to five days is when the benefits of sobriety really start to kick in though, as your blood pressure starts to drop causing you to feel less stressed. Something else that could result in you feeling more calm is the lessened financial burden that not drinking has, as people can spend anywhere between $500 and $2,000 on average every year on alcohol.
Your appetite can also typically decrease when you're haven't consumed alcohol for around a week, which is partly why so many people manage to lose weight when they cut out booze — although alcohol itself has a rather high calorie count.
The condition of your skin tends to improve as your body is more hydrated, and your water retention overall increases dramatically leading to a healthier lifestyle.
Within a few weeks your cognitive ability will even improve, and the pressure on your kidneys, lungs, and heart will be relieved, causing them to recover over time from the strain that they've been put under due to alcohol — albeit the latter tends to take months more than weeks to regenerate fully.
One thing that the video notes though is that while these benefits all come in full when you completely cut out alcohol, many people can still experience most of the positive changes with dramatically reduced consumption, as depending on how much you consumed before it can still be healthy to have a drink every couple of days or once a week.