RISK OF ALCOHOL ON WOMEN

In recent years the use of alcoholic beverages has increased. And this has reduced the margin between male and female drinkers.

We now have more women from different culture consuming alcohol for various reasons. While most of them still manage to drink responsibly, alcohol pose a higher risk to women, who are more vulnerable to alcohol's harmful effects. Women are generally adviced to drink less because their bodies can’t process alcohol as well as men’s.

There are a few reasons for this:

• The average woman weighs less than the average man. This means she has less tissue to absorb alcohol.
• Women have a higher ratio of fat to water than men and so they’re less able to dilute alcohol within the body. It’s why women will tend to have a higher concentration of alcohol in their blood than men after drinking the same amount.
•  Alcohol stays in a women’s system longer before being metabolised (processed) than it does in a man’s. This is because women generally have lower levels of alcohol dehydrogenase (AHD) the chemical that metabolises alcohol in the liver.

 So after a man and woman of the same weight drink the same amount of alcohol, the woman’s blood alcohol concentration will tend to be higher, putting her at greater risk for harm. Other biological differences, including hormones, may contribute as well.
 Women are also more likely to abuse alcohol and other substances in order to self-medicate problems such as depression, anxiety, and stress, or to cope with emotional difficulties.

Some of the major risks women are exposed to are:

Sexual Abuse

Most women who are drunk are reported to have been raped or sexually assaulted.

Affects Fertility

Women trying to have babies are advised to stay off alcohol. Alcohol can disrupt a woman's menstrual cycle and reduce her chances of conceiving.

Physical Looks

Alcohol intake interfares with the normal sleep process, dehydrates your body, deprives the skin of certain vitamins and nutrients. After drinking, you have tired eyes, bad skin, weight etc. all these make you look unattractive.
Try taking a break from alcohol and see how you look and feel.
 
Liver Damage

Women who drink are more likely to develop alcoholic hepatitis (liver inflammation) than men who drink the same amount of alcohol. Alcoholic hepatitis can lead to cirrhosis.

Heart Disease

Chronic heavy drinking is a leading cause of heart disease. Among heavy drinkers, women are more susceptible to alcoholrelated heart disease than men, even though women drink less alcohol over a lifetime than men.

Breast Cancer

Women who consume about one drink per day have a 10 percent higher chance of developing breast cancer than women who do not drink at all. That risk rises another 10 percent for every extra drink they have per day.
Drinking alcohol can increase your risk of several types of cancer, including liver, bowel, breast, mouth, oesophageal cancer (food pipe) and laryngeal cancer (voice box).

Pregnancy

Any drinking during pregnancy is risky. A pregnant woman who drinks heavily puts her fetus at risk for learning and behavioral problems and abnormal facial features. Even moderate drinking during pregnancy can cause problems. Drinking during pregnancy also may increase the risk for preterm labor.


Women should start reducing their alcohol intake by
Give alcohol free days
Stop using alcohol as a means of relaxation
Know what you are drinking

Meanwhile these category of women are advised not to drink alcohol at all
  Anyone under age 21
  Anyone who takes medications that can interact negatively with alcohol
  Anyone who is pregnant or trying to conceive