The effect of vodka on blood pressure and blood vessels

3 September 2021 11:09

Quantity

Alcohol abuse is a pressing problem of modern society, which gives rise to crimes, accidents, injuries and poisoning in all segments of the population. Alcohol addiction is especially difficult to perceive when it concerns the most promising part of society - students. The mortality rate of the working-age population due to the use of alcoholic beverages ranks high. Scientists estimate alcoholism as a collective suicide of the nation. Addiction to alcohol, like cancer, destroys the personality of an individual and society as a whole from within.

How does alcohol affect the human body? Let's look at the effect of alcoholic drinks on all organs and find out how alcohol affects the brain, liver, kidneys, heart and blood vessels, nervous system, as well as men's and women's health.

Content:

1. The influence of alcohol on indicators
2. For hypertension
3. At low pressure
4. Related factors
5. Possible consequences
6. Compatibility of alcohol and antihypertensive drugs
7. How to stop a rise

The most frequently asked questions to narcologists are whether alcohol increases or decreases blood pressure, and how alcohol affects existing hypertension or hypotension. The widespread belief that under the influence of ethanol blood vessels dilate, helping to normalize blood pressure, is incorrect. Conducted research and collection of statistical data indicate that in most cases of alcohol dependence, hypertension is diagnosed. A trend is also observed in people who regularly drink alcoholic beverages.

What should you not eat if you have high blood pressure?

• if you have hypertension, you should exclude strong coffee and strong tea from the menu;
• fatty meat of any kind (during treatment);
• rich broths are prohibited;
• salt must be limited to a minimum;
• You should be careful with baked goods (pies, buns, cakes) or stop eating them altogether. It all depends on the doctor’s recommendations.

The influence of alcohol on indicators

To understand the issue, consider the effect of ethanol on blood vessels. In a healthy person, small doses lead to a slight decrease in blood pressure. The effect is due to the toxic effect on the neurons of the vasomotor center of the medulla oblongata, which is responsible for the tone of arteries, veins and capillaries. Temporary relaxation of the vascular walls occurs, thereby increasing the internal lumen. The action is felt as a general relaxation, a spreading of warmth throughout the body.

When drinking a large volume, the opposite reaction develops, causing vasospasm. The vascular lumen sharply narrows, blood flow slows down, accumulating in certain zones, and a sharp increase in indicators is observed. An addict or drinker with a history of hypertension may develop a hypertensive crisis. With systematic abuse, unexpected changes are likely.

Should hypertensive patients participate in feasts?

It is unlikely that a person with high blood pressure will never participate in family holidays, attend corporate events, celebrate the New Year, or receive guests. And the tradition of celebrating holidays with a glass in hand goes back to the distant past.

Doctors advise people suffering from hypertension to measure their blood pressure before visiting a restaurant or visiting someone. If it is within normal limits, you can drink a small dose of alcohol, equivalent to 30-50g of vodka or 0.5 liters of beer. If your blood pressure is elevated, even slightly, it is better to abstain from drinking.

Remember that regardless of how exactly alcohol affects blood pressure, even an absolutely healthy person should take moderation in drinking alcohol. There is no therapeutic dose of alcoholic beverages. Yes, and you need to be treated for hypertension not with alcohol, but with medications and a proper diet.

For hypertension

In case of illness, alcohol causes jumps up to critical levels. The mechanism is as follows: relaxation is followed by a sharp spasm and the release of stress hormones into the blood. The heart rate accelerates, the organ pumps blood faster, thereby raising blood pressure.

Frequent consumption, especially in large quantities, is strictly contraindicated for hypertensive patients. Changes in blood flow caused by periodic relaxation and spasms worsen the condition of the body. Lack of oxygen and nutrients has a detrimental effect on health.

This is especially noticeable in people suffering from alcoholism, when there is a lack of vitamins and minerals. Not only does the risk of cardiovascular pathologies increase, but also premature wear and tear of the entire system.

At low pressure

With hypotension, the walls of blood vessels are dilated and are in a state of decreased tone. Under the influence of small doses of ethyl alcohol, the muscles of the vascular walls relax even more, thereby reducing the pressure of blood flow. The blood supply to the extremities and brain deteriorates, and the ensuing hypoxia causes drowsiness. It is for this reason that a drunk person feels numbness in his legs and dizziness.

Regular drinking leads to increased pressure and even greater stretching of the walls. The accumulation of cholesterol and changes in blood composition provoke the formation of blood clots and atherosclerotic plaques. 5-6 hours after a heavy libation, dehydration of the body occurs, hemoconcentration of the blood increases, that is, its thickening. In this regard, the formation of blood clots and the complete deterioration of blood supply, especially small capillaries, increases.

Hypertension and treatment of hypertension in alcoholism

Hypertension is a disease that requires constant monitoring by specialists, as well as treatment, which will be selected by a doctor after a comprehensive examination of the body. Neglect of one's health can be disastrous for an alcoholic.

Timely seeking help for hypertension can stabilize the condition of an alcoholic through a course of therapy in a medical center under the supervision of specialists.

Author:

Oleg Vasilievich Shevchenko

Related factors

In addition to the dosage, the patient’s age, existing diseases and even the type of drink are affected. Under the age of 40, changes are practically not felt even after prolonged use. Over 40 and up to 55 years, 67% of people experience symptoms of blood pressure surges. In old age, almost every person who drinks has problems with the functioning of the cardiovascular system.

Existing pathologies of the heart and blood vessels, as well as the kidneys and endocrine system, greatly increase the risk of hypertension with systematic use and the presence of chronic alcoholism . Also, aggravating factors are considered to be a tendency to blood clots, elevated cholesterol levels or diabetes mellitus, intracranial hypertension.

There is an opinion that cognac relieves spasms and normalizes blood flow, but the temporary effect has already been written above. Taking wine in therapeutic doses is also not justified. Even the consumption of a small amount does not go unnoticed and causes damage to health.

It is better not to drink alcohol if you are obese and prone to swelling. This will only make the condition worse.

Factors that increase blood pressure

Factors that influence the increase in blood pressure are: excess weight, poor diet (excessive consumption of salty foods), physical inactivity, constant stress, depression and use of contraceptives (in women).

Alcohol consumption is one of the most common causes of high blood pressure among the population.

In chronic alcoholism, alcoholic drinks increase blood pressure, after which it can drop sharply when a person is sober or suffers from a hangover during the abstinence period.

High blood pressure is often observed in alcoholics who regularly drink alcohol.

Possible consequences

Among the heart pathologies caused by systematic abuse, the most common are:

• chronic heart failure;
• alcoholic cardiomyopathy;
• organic and functional myocardial lesions, ischemic heart disease;
• arrhythmias.

The danger is posed by changes caused by prolonged binge drinking or a state of abstinence, during which severe complications develop.

1. Ischemic strokes, accompanied by impaired cerebral circulation, leading to partial paralysis and disability.
2. Arrhythmias, manifested either by a rapid heartbeat or a slowdown.
3. Hypertensive or hypotensive crises are cases of sustained decrease or increase, tolerant to the action of drugs.
4. Myocardial infarction, causing partial impairment or loss of pumping function.
5. Transient ischemic attacks are cerebral circulatory disorders that cause neurological abnormalities: speech disorders, loss of memory or motor functions, paresis.

Alcohol increases and sometimes decreases blood pressure. In addition, it neutralizes the effects of drugs to normalize blood pressure. Because of this, during horse racing, the attack cannot be controlled with medication.

Contraindications for use in heart disease

Ethanol contributes to the accelerated development of cardiovascular diseases. If you have any of these pathologies, you should be careful about drinking alcohol or stop drinking it altogether:

• arrhythmia - this especially applies to atrial fibrillation in paroxysmal form;
• tachycardia - ethanol has a detrimental effect on the body and causes critical harm, an attack may occur;
• angina pectoris - you need to limit alcohol consumption to 40 ml, choose only a high-quality product;
• heart disease - you can drink only a small amount of dry red wine or cognac, and be responsible for observing the dosage, which is 150 and 40 ml, respectively.

It is recommended to abstain from alcoholic beverages if you have heart failure. If you have recently undergone heart surgery, you should exclude alcohol from your diet for the entire adaptation period.

Compatibility of alcohol and antihypertensive drugs

If you are diagnosed with hypertension and take daily medications, you should stop drinking strong drinks, since ethanol reduces the effectiveness of the drugs. On rare occasions you can drink a glass of good wine.

The use of most antihypertensive drugs during or after drinking any alcoholic beverages is also prohibited. A proven medicine, when interacting with ethyl alcohol, can give an unexpected side reaction.

Carefully read the instructions for the drug for interactions, since taking certain medications together is potentially dangerous to health and life.

Effect on the liver

It's no secret how harmful alcohol affects the liver. The stage of ethyl alcohol release is much longer than absorption. Up to 10% of ethanol is released in pure form with saliva, sweat, urine, feces and during breathing. That is why after drinking alcohol a person has a specific smell of urine and “fumes” from the mouth. The remaining 90% of ethanol has to be broken down by the liver. Complex biochemical processes occur in it, one of which is the conversion of ethyl alcohol into acetaldehyde. But the liver can only break down about 1 glass of alcohol in 10 hours. Unsplit ethanol damages liver cells.

Alcohol affects the development of the following liver diseases.

1. Fatty liver. At this stage, fat in the form of globules accumulates in hepatocytes (liver cells). Over time, it sticks together, forming blisters and cysts in the area of ​​the portal vein, which interfere with the movement of blood from it.
2. At the next stage, alcoholic hepatitis develops - inflammation of its cells. At the same time, the liver increases in size. Fatigue, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea appear. At this stage, after stopping ethanol consumption, liver cells are still able to regenerate (recover). Continued use leads to a transition to the next stage.
3. Liver cirrhosis is a typical disease associated with alcohol abuse. At this stage, liver cells are replaced by connective tissue. The liver becomes covered with scars; when palpated, it is dense with an uneven surface. This stage is irreversible - dead cells cannot recover. But stopping alcohol consumption stops liver scarring. The remaining healthy cells perform limited functions.

If alcohol consumption does not stop at the stage of cirrhosis, the process progresses to the stage of cancer. A healthy liver can be maintained with moderate consumption.

Important! According to WHO recommendations, the safe dose is 10 grams of alcohol per day for women and 20 grams for men.

The equivalent is a glass of beer or a glass of wine per day. And even with such dosages, you should not drink alcohol every day. It is necessary to allow alcohol to completely leave the body, and this takes 2-3 days.

How to stop high blood pressure during abstinence

When drinking strong alcohol, sharp changes are characteristic. What to do when alcohol lowers or increases blood pressure during withdrawal:

• measure indicators;
• if a jump of more than 20% of the individual norm is detected, call emergency medical help;
• if the jump is less than 20%, you need to drink more fluid to prevent dehydration.

Taking sorbents - polysorb, enterosgel, activated carbon will help remove toxins faster.

If you have existing diseases, you should stop drinking alcohol. A timely visit to a narcologist will help with this.

How does alcohol affect hypertensive patients?

Champagne, wine, and vodka, due to their properties, provoke a sharp increase in blood pressure, so those who have already been diagnosed with hypertension (hypertension) need to be very careful with drinking.

The most useful recommendation would be to contact your doctor and ask what kind of alcohol and in what portions you can drink and whether you can drink at all. Since there is no clear and unambiguous recommendation for hypertensive patients. Also, drug treatment clinics can provide advice in this matter. Narcological clinic “Ibis”

provides assistance to people with alcohol addiction.

The information is provided for informational purposes and is not a guide to action. Do not self-medicate. Be sure to consult a specialist.

Literature:

1. Risk factors for arterial hypertension / V. R. Weber, B. B. Fishman; Feder. education agency, Novgorod. state University named after Yaroslav the Wise, Novgorod. scientific Center of the Northwestern Branch of the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences. — St. Petersburg: Novgor. state univ., 2005 (St. Petersburg: Printing house “Science”). — 207 p.
2. Hypertension. High blood pressure disease [Electronic resource]: blood pressure control, non-drug methods for treating hypertension, lowering blood pressure with the DASH diet: 12+ / P. A. Fadeev. - Moscow: Eksmo, 2014. - 430 p.
3. Alcohol and arterial hypertension / Ostroumova Olga Dmitrievna, Saperova Ekaterina Vladimirovna / 2014 / Rational pharmacotherapy in cardiology.
4. Changes in the daily blood pressure profile under the influence of systematic alcohol consumption / Zhirov I.V., Ogurtsov P.P., Shelepin A.A. / 2000 / Bulletin of the Peoples' Friendship University of Russia. Series: Medicine.

Vodka and blood pressure: the body’s individual reaction

As already mentioned, the effect of vodka on the body of each person is purely individual. Sometimes drinking alcohol actually helps lower blood pressure. But this only happens to people who drink alcohol infrequently. The more and more often a person drinks vodka or other alcoholic drinks, the more this effect decreases. Subsequently, it disappears completely.

It happens that a person at a corporate party drinks in large quantities and feels good during the feast. But the next day his blood pressure will definitely increase. Moreover, the blood pressure indicator will directly depend on the amount of alcohol drunk the day before.

The impact of alcohol on the cardiovascular system can be completely unpredictable. Therefore, it does not matter at all how exactly vodka acts in case of high blood pressure in a person. It is important that the blood pressure indicator changes in an unnatural way under its influence. And erratic surges in blood pressure and heart rate are certainly harmful to health.

In the body of a person who abuses alcohol, not only problems with blood pressure occur. Other dangerous consequences include:

• cardiac ischemia;
• stomach diseases;
• pancreas;
• various problems with the circulatory system;
• kidney and liver diseases.

For people suffering from chronic diseases, it is better to abstain from drinking alcohol or reduce it to a minimum.