Consequences of Alcohol Use in Diabetics

Most of the existing research on alcohol-induced blackouts either uses asingle item from the Rutgers Alcohol Problem Index or the investigator’sown description/definition of an alcohol-induced blackout. Optimally, actual BrACs orblood draws could be collected to back-extrapolate peak BACs to the time ofblackout. This information will enable researchers to statistically control forthe direct effects of alcohol consumption and examine diabetes and alcohol blackouts factors that influencealcohol-induced blackouts over and beyond the amount of alcohol consumed.

Risk Factors for Alcohol-Induced Blackouts

In the fasting state, as a first line of defense against hypoglycemia, glycogen is broken down into its constituent glucose molecules, which are secreted by the liver Substance abuse into the blood to maintain normal or near-normal blood sugar levels. Generally, the glycogen supply is depleted after 1 or 2 days of fasting. Thus, a person who has been drinking alcohol and not eating for 1 or more days has exhausted his or her glycogen supply. Type 2 diabetes, which in most cases develops in people over age 40, has a somewhat different pathophysiology than type 1. People with type 2 continue to produce insulin in early disease stages; however, their bodies do not respond adequately to the hormone (i.e., the patients are resistant to insulin’s effects).

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• If someone with diabetes has consumed a lot of alcohol, it’s also possible that they can miss the signs of hypoglycemia.
• In rare cases, however, the condition also may affect people with type 2 diabetes.
• The nerves that control erection are part of the autonomic nervous system, which controls numerous vital processes that occur without conscious efforts (e.g., breathing and the contractions of the gut necessary for proper digestion).

During fMRI scanning,participants completed a contextual memory task. Based on the Marino and Fromme(2015) findings, one could speculate that a genetic vulnerabilityto alcohol-induced blackouts is expressed only under certain environmentalconditions, representing a possible gene by environment interaction. Forexample, a mother with problematic drinking habits might contribute to anenvironment that is characterized by lower parental monitoring and increasedalcohol availability. These environmental factors, in turn, could createstress and contribute to early initiation of alcohol use and maladaptivedrinking behaviors in her offspring, especially sons, who are geneticallypredisposed to alcohol misuse and alcohol-induced blackouts. Given thepotential impact of these findings on prevention and intervention programs,additional research examining genetic and environmental factors contributingto alcohol-induced blackouts is needed. The pancreas, which is located behind the stomach, serves two functions.

• It may be wise to set an alarm on a phone to wake up and check glucose for several hours after going to bed.
• En bloc blackouts represent a more severe form of alcoholic memory loss in comparison to fragmentary blackouts.
• Beyond memory issues, frequent blackouts correlate with serious health concerns.
• Provision of misinformation,the passage of time, and being asked or interviewed about prior events can alllead to memory distortions as the individual strives to reconstruct prior events(Loftus and Davis, 2006; Nash and Takarangi, 2011).

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Subsequent interviews could then determine what aspects ofthose events were remembered and whether they were remembered in the same waythat they were reported during the drinking event. Diabetes and alcohol consumption are the two most common underlying causes of peripheral neuropathy. Among diabetics, the prevalence of neuropathy with obvious symptoms (i.e., symptomatic neuropathy) increases with increasing disease duration. That increase in prevalence was most apparent in patients with a disease duration of less than 4 years. Other researchers observed that the prevalence of neuropathy in type 1 diabetics increased in a linear fashion with the alcohol amount consumed (Mitchell and Vinik 1987). Those researchers also reported that diabetics who consumed more than eight standard drinks per week developed peripheral neuropathy faster than did diabetics who consumed eight or fewer drinks per week.

Benefits of Alcohol in Type 2 Diabetes

When alcohol impairs these areas, it becomes harder for the brain to form new memories or retrieve old ones. In other words, blackouts occur because the brain is unable to store memories of events that happened while a person was intoxicated. Drinking alcohol regularly raises your blood pressure, triglycerides and cholesterol. This increases your risk of heart disease and heart attacks, stroke, pancreatitis and liver disease. Alcohol lowers blood sugar which may put you at greater risk of hypoglycaemia.

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• Some alcoholic drinks are worse than others when you have type 2 diabetes.
• This way, if an emergency arises, medical personnel (who are trained to look for IDs) will know you have diabetes.
• They found that alcohol dependence symptomspredicted an increased frequency of blackouts and consequences the followingyear.

Studiesexamining potential genetic and environmental influences, as well as theirinteractions, are clearly warranted given recent research findings of Marino and Fromme (2015). Sex differencesin alcohol-induced blackouts are another area in need of study. In contrast to chronic alcohol consumption in the fed state—which raises blood sugar levels, resulting in hyperglycemia—alcohol consumption in the fasting state can induce a profound reduction in blood glucose levels (i.e., hypoglycemia). That effect has been observed in both type 1 and type 2 diabetics as well as in nondiabetics (Arky and Freinkel 1964).