However, in most cases, the full extent of the damage caused by chronic and excessive consumption of alcohol to the cardiovascular system is not fully resolved. Usually, any reversal of damage occurs quickly from the first few months to the first year of abstinence and then slows down after that. Cardiovascular problems from alcohol abuse may not be fully resolved, but like the same factors of neurological damage, some may be reversible. Again, the changes usually occur within the first year, after abstinence, and then slow down.
People need to be aware of their diet, exercise, sleep and stress management to experience their full potential for recovery. When people participate in binge drinking and stop drinking, some of the brain damage that occurs can be reversed and some of the memory loss they experience can be stopped. Scientists have claimed that alcohol causes what is known as a “contraction” in the brain, resulting in cognitive damage; however, this will begin to reverse when alcohol remains outside the body for prolonged periods of time. For those in recovery who have embraced sobriety, it's natural to worry about the potential for lasting consequences.
However, not all damage from excessive drinking lasts forever. In some cases, it is possible to reverse the effects of alcohol by abstinence from alcohol. This is not true in all cases, so the sooner abstinence becomes a reality, the better. That same person may wake up the next day feeling a little dizzy, and that nausea can be accompanied by a terrible headache.
Over time, those hangover symptoms go away and the person returns to normal once again, unless scientists take a close look at that person's brain. Long-term, repeated alcohol use can cause persistent brain changes. These changes can make clear thinking difficult and, in some cases, the damage cannot be reversed. Liver damage associated with mild alcoholic hepatitis is usually reversible if you stop drinking permanently.
The shrinkage of any part of the brain is worrying, but the damage caused by alcohol is especially worrying, because some of the shrinkage is likely due to cell death. Once brain cells die, the effect of brain damage is permanent. Fortunately, some of the changes in the alcoholic brain are due to the fact that cells simply change size in the brain. Once an alcoholic stops drinking, these cells return to normal volume, demonstrating that some alcohol-related brain damage is reversible.
In particular, elimination of alcohol and feedback with the control diet normalize serum NSAG levels, indicating that alcohol withdrawal decreases hepatic absorption of circulating fatty acids and attenuates adipose lipolysis to relieve alcohol-induced hepatic steatosis. Research indicates that the impact on gray matter in the brain, which is reduced by alcohol abuse, begins to reverse in two weeks, when chronic alcohol abusers become abstinent. Gastrointestinal alcohol metabolism is significant, as it affects the systemic availability of alcohol, while generating acetaldehyde locally. Genetic polymorphisms of alcohol-metabolizing enzymes and alcohol consumption are associated with asymptomatic cardiac remodeling and subclinical systolic dysfunction in community-dwelling Great Asians.
Even after years of excessive alcohol consumption, the liver has a remarkable regenerative capacity and, after alcohol elimination, can recover a significant part of its original mass and function. These findings suggest that the harmful effects of alcohol on protein trafficking routes occur fairly quickly (1 to 5 weeks) and that full recovery is achieved within 7 days of cessation of alcohol consumption. The data show that chronic alcohol intake induces osteopenia regardless of whether liver cirrhosis is present, and that some relationship can be expected between the amount and duration of alcohol consumption and the degree of bone loss. When people who drink a lot of alcohol stop drinking, some of the brain damage that long-term alcohol use can cause can be reversed and some of the memory loss they may experience can be stopped.
Animal (rodent) studies report that the adverse effects of alcohol on bones are limited not only to bone formation and resorption, but that chronic administration of alcohol also impairs the healing ability of fractured bone in rodents. Although most studies suggest that alcohol induces bone loss, epidemiological studies indicate that increased bone mass is associated with moderate alcohol consumption in postmenopausal women. The main and most catalytically effective enzyme is alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH), which catalyzes the formation of acetaldehyde from alcohol. While more work needs to be done to determine how alcohol affects pancreatic repair, it seems that chronic cessation of alcohol consumption delays the progression of alcohol-induced chronic pancreatitis.
Elimination of alcohol for 2 weeks almost normalized all liver functions in rats previously subjected to 6 weeks of intragastric alcohol administration. Long-term use or abuse of alcohol has been shown to cause adverse health problems; however, some effects of alcohol can be reversed; this is only possible if the person remains sober after recovery. . .
