Sugar Addiction and Alcoholism

Sugar Addiction and Alcoholism

Sugar Addiction and Alcoholism: The Brain

Contemporary research has shown that a high number of alcohol-dependent and other drug-dependent people have a preference for sweets, especially for foods with a high sucrose concentration. Moreover, both human and animal studies have demonstrated that in some brains the consumption of foods or drinks high in sugar causes the release of euphoric endorphins and dopamine within the reward center of the brain just like drugs of abuse. The neurobiological pathways of drug and “sugar addiction” involve similar parts and processes of the brain.

Sugar Addiction and Alcoholism: The Science

Craving, tolerance, and withdrawal have been documented in both human and animal studies. Furthermore, there seems to be similarity between sugar addiction and narcotic dependence in some people. It has also been observed that the children of alcoholic parents, particularly alcoholic fathers, are at greater risk to have a strong sweet preference, and this may an eating disorder for some. In the last two decades research has noted that specific genes may underlie the sweet preference in alcohol- and drug-dependent individuals, as well as in children alcoholic fathers.

Sugar Addiction and Alcoholism: Eating Disorders

Often times, alcoholics who get sober then develop food addiction. Research has shown that when people binge on carbs and sugar, and then restrict their intake, their bodies create a natural opioid. It is released in the body much like the chemicals released when people are doing other narcotics. According to Tennie McCarty, the founder and CEO of the eating disorder treatment center Shades of Hope, “Often we will see addicts switch off from one drug to another, whether that other drug is nicotine or sugar or other foods. Not everyone will take it to the depths that they have taken their primary addiction.”

A Real Thing: Sugar Addiction and Alcoholism and Drug Addiction

The PET and CAT scans of food addicts look almost identical to that of alcoholics and drug addicts, showing that sugar creates a physical addiction. In addition, sugar addicts carry the same D2 dopamine receptor, the gene that identifies addiction, as alcoholics and addicts. In those ways, biochemically, food addiction is just like addiction to drugs and alcohol. When we talk to recovering alcoholics and addicts who are finding their way to Overeaters Anonymous, we find a very common refrain: I started using sugar or food just like I was using alcohol.” And in some cases, sugar addiction can be just as harmful as alcoholism. McCarty mentions a man she treated whose addiction to sugar made him sicker than his alcoholism. Her patient was a football player and a Gulf War veteran, and in general, was a healthy, athletic man, but then he started drinking and became an alcoholic.

Sugar Addiction and Alcoholism: One in the Same

Many people who experience sugar addiction report that sugar helps them cope just like alcohol once did. People are searching for something to medicate their feelings and they will continue to do that until they look at what they are using over. It comes down to quality of life. Not everyone needs to use something. When people learn healthy coping methods to deal with the issues they can recover from all of their addictions.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sources:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/

http://www.thefix.com/

If you need help with your addiction give us a call now at 1-800-984-4003.

Is it okay to mix alcohol and sleeping pills?

is it okay to mix alcohol and sleeping pills

The short and not-so-sweet answer to the question “is it okay to mix alcohol and sleeping pills?” is: no, it is not ok to mix the two; it is quite dangerous and potentially fatal. Alcohol increases the effects of the sleeping pill, causing a series of symptoms that can lead to death.

Death Can Occur When You Mix Alcohol and Sleeping Pills

Mixing alcohol and sleeping pills can be extremely dangerous. The combination increases the sedative effect of sleep medication is a sedative and when you add alcohol to the mix it can be fatal. In fact, sleeping pill labels warn against using alcohol while taking the drug. This is because this is and has been a well-known interaction that leads to tragedy.

What Happens When You Mix Alcohol and Sleeping Pills

Sleeping pills depress the central nervous system and adding alcohol to the mix only serves to increase that effect, according to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA). So, if you are taking any over-the-counter or prescription medications, speak with your doctor or pharmacist about the risks of drinking alcohol in combination with your medication.

Because alcohol and sleeping pills are depressants, when they are taken together, they cause your body to relax more than it really should. This means that your breathing slows drastically and therefore less oxygen gets to your blood cells and then your blood pressure drops. Your breathing slows down too much or even stops, which can cause you to go into a coma and suffer serious brain damage.

Statistics on When You Mix Alcohol and Sleeping Pills

In 1983, The Archives of Internal Medicine study looked at 50 million death certificates to determine why 92 people died at home from the combination of medications and alcohol. By the last year of the study in 2004, that number had grown to 3,792, an increase of nearly 3,200%.

According to the NIAAA, more than 150 medications do not mix with alcohol. These drug interactions may result in increased risk of illness, injury and death.

The number of Americans who have died in their home after combining prescription and over-the-counter medications with alcohol has risen more than 3,000% over the twenty years, according to a study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine.

 Why People Mix Alcohol and Sleeping Pills

People are often not aware of the dangers when mixing alcohol with sleeping aids. Just like any physical ailment, not being able to sleep can be upsetting and even painful and so people want to stop that pain. People often resort to alcohol for its calming effect.

Also, over the course of time that you are not getting good, restful sleep, your ability to think straight diminishes and your thought process might not be the clearest. So you won’t take the time to carefully read medication labels and, if you do, you may not process the information properly. The same goes for when you are given instructions by your doctor, if it is a prescribed sleep aid. Information just does get processed clearly when you haven’t slept and can’t think straight. You are more likely to make poor decisions, like mix alcohol and sleeping pills when you haven’t been getting enough sleep.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sources:

http://www.ask.com/

http://www.webmd.com/

http://ww2.dcmilitary.com/

If you need help with your addiction give us a call now at 1-800-984-4003.

What is Couch Syrup?

what is couch syrup

Couch Syrup, that’s right couch not cough, although it is in actuality cough syrup, refers to a specific kind of liquid cough medicine – that containing promethazine and codeine. This is a by-prescription-only medication that people have been using recreationally and abusing. This is not your typical over-the-counter cough syrup; couch syrup contains potent drugs that can lead to overdose and death.

Couch syrup has many other slang names such as purple drank, sizzurp, lean, syrup, drank, purple jelly, and Texas tea.

First called purple drank, couch syrup has been a popular recreational drug in the rap and hip hop community in the southern United States, originating in Houston, Texas. Couch syrup is made more palatable by being mixed with soft drinks such as Sprite or Mountain Dew. Purple drank gets its name from the purplish hue from the dye in the cough syrup.

Couch Syrup Can Be Fatal

Both the codeine and the more potent promethazine are depressants which mean that they slow down the functions of the Central Nervous System (CNS), namely respiration. When overdose occurs, breathing slows to a complete stop. The person goes into respiratory arrest and then cardiac arrest. This is when death occurs.

Just like with other CNS depressants, mixing couch syrup with alcohol greatly increases the risk of respiratory failure and death.

Notable Deaths

Couch syrup has been either a confirmed or suspected  cause of death among several well-known people. DJ Screw, who popularized the codeine-based drink, died of a codeine-promethazine-alcohol overdose on November 16, 2000, several months after the video to Three 6 Mafia’s single debuted.

Big Moe, one of DJ Screw’s successors died at age 33 in 2007, after suffering a heart attack and subsequently being in a coma. He was known to obsess over couch syrup and purple drank in his lyrics; this is apparent in his album titles: City of Syrup and Purple World. Needless to say, there was speculation that purple drank contributed to his death.

Couch Syrup and Alcoholism

According to the Urban Dictionary, couch syrup is “the liquor one hides in a couch (and throughout the house) while pretending to be sober.” This implies its relationship to an already well-known problem: alcoholism.

Signs of Alcoholism

If you are drinking couch syrup or alcohol and find that the following descriptions apply to you, then you should consider that your use is more than social or recreational.

If you:

  • can’t quit drinking or control how much alcohol you drink
  • need to drink more to get the same effect
  • have withdrawal symptoms if you stop drinking (nausea, sweating, shakiness, and anxiety)
  • spend a lot of time drinking and recovering from drinking
  • have given up other activities in order to drink
  • keep drinking even though it cause problems in your relationships
  • keep drinking even though it is causing health problems

 Other red flags include:

  • Drinking in the morning and/or drinking alone
  • Switching from beer to wine because you think this will keep you from drinking or from getting drunk
  • Feeling guilty because of your drinking
  • Making excuses for your drinking
  • Buying alcohol from different stores and locations
  • Worrying that you won’t have enough alcohol for an evening, weekend, or holiday

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sources:

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Couch%20syrup

http://en.wikipedia.org/

 

If you need help with your addiction give us a call now at 1-800-984-4003.

How to stop drinking

How to stop drinking

how to stop drinkingDrinking isn’t a scary thing until it becomes a problem. It gets especially scary when you find yourself drinking even when you don’t want to. It can seem impossible to overcome your drinking but there are actually steps you can to stop drinking. As long as you haven’t reached the point of no return you can do what you need to rewind and stop your problem drinking in its tracks.

How to stop drinking: acknowledge why you do it

Why do you engage in your drinking? You have to be able to answer that question in order to stop drinking. Is it to help you with anxiety and stress? It may be hard to admit why you have you are drinking but you can’t change what you don’t acknowledge exists. Admit why you engage in the problem drinking to yourself and you are on your to stopping drinking.

How to stop drinking: Think rational thoughts instead of sitting in denial

You probably understand at a conscious and intellectual level that your drinking is unhealthy yet you keep on using or drinking and this baffles you. If you are in denial about your drinking this is probably why. If you can’t get through the day without a shot of vodka, you may be self-medicating and if you have reached the point of knowing its bad and can’t stop you may need outside help from something like a drug rehab to stop drinking. Realizing this is a rational thought.

How to stop drinking: Using coping skills

People never break bad habits they merely replace them with new ones. Recognize that you get a reward of some sort from smoking, using drugs, and drinking. Find something else to give you that reward and you have found new coping skills and have stopped the drinking. If you have reached the point of no return and need to attend rehab it is still a very good idea to find new coping skills for life for when you are out of rehab. Finding new coping skills can stop drinking in its tracks. And if you can stop drinking then you can begin to live a healthy life again. You have the ability to quiet yourself without drugs and alcohol; without your alcohol. You also have the ability to reduce stress without drugs and alcohol. Find new things to use to stop drinking instead of drugs and alcohol which fuel it.

How to stop drinking: Have a support system and become accountable

If you truly want to stop drinking and get clean then you are going to need help from people and you are going to need to be accountable to those people. Accountability means showing up when you say you are going to and no longer engaging in alcoholic drinking behaviors like being flaky. The support system you have is meant to help you stop drinking by telling you the truth about yourself when you want to go into denial about your drinking. Your support system will also help you to find new ways to be healthier and do those things with you. Support and accountability can also come in the form of rehab to stop drinking.

 

 

If you need help with your addiction give us a call now at 1-800-984-4003.

Alcohol and IBS

Alcohol and IBS

Drinking a lot of alcohol can cause a lot of problems including irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). Even if alcohol is only consumed occasionally it could end up doing damage to internal organs. It is a widely known fact that the ill effects of alcohol can be avoided by avoiding alcohol all together or by staying way below the recommended levels of alcohol intake. Although, someone who has irritable bowel syndrome may find that they are better off not drinking at all because even one drink could cause their symptoms to flare up.

What is irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)?

IBS is a functional disorder that is in the intestines. IBS doesn’t cause actual damage to the bowels but the symptoms can be really unpleasant and can also interfere with a person’s ability to enjoy life normally. Those people with IBS may have to deal with pain and/or discomfort in the abdominal area. They might also have to deal with frequent episodes of diarrhea or constipation. It is believed that about 20 percent of the US population will have to deal with the symptoms of IBS at some point in their life.

What is the cause of IBS?

The actual known cause of IBS is unknown but it could be due to many factors including:

  • Having a sensitive colon
  • High and long lasting stress
  • Bacterial infections
  • A more mild form of celiac disease (celiac disease causes damage to the small intestine and make it hard for the body to absorb certain foods)
  • High levels of serotonin in the gastrointestinal tract which can interfere with normal bowel movements and increase the sensitivity of pain receptors
  • An effect of taking antibiotics because the medication may kill harmless bacteria in the intestines that are used for normal bowel function
  • An alteration or change to normal bowel function which can leads to strong spasms or temporary suspension of bowel function
  • Over activity in the gut can also cause IBS

What are the symptoms IBS?

  • Abdominal pain
  • Bloating
  • Cramping with bowel movements
  • Constipation
  • The need to strain when passing stool
  • Diarrhea
  • Urgent need to open bowels
  • Loss of appetite
  • Belching
  • Tiredness
  • Nausea

 Alcohol and IBS

Alcohol and IBS do not mix well. Alcohol increases the severity of IBS symptoms. Even just one alcoholic drink can be enough to cause an attack of IBS. Because alcohol is a poison or toxic substance that irritates the bowel it is extremely common for IBS to have their symptoms flare up after drinking. Some alcoholic drinks are less likely to cause a flare up of IBS symptoms. It is known that beer can make symptoms of IBS much worse. Many people with IBS report their symptoms for IBS getting significantly better after they stopped drinking all together. It may be best for someone with IBS to stop drinking to see if it gets any better.

 

 

If you need help with your addiction give us a call now at 1-800-984-4003.

What are Delirium Tremens?

What are Delirium Tremens?

Delirium tremens or DT’s for short are a severe and possibly fatal form of alcohol withdrawal. Delirium tremens involve sudden and severe mental or nervous system changes. Anyone who has ever seen someone experience delirium tremens knows how frightening and scary they can be.

Delirium tremens don’t only happen to someone who is withdrawing from alcohol but this is when they are most common. Delirium tremens can occur due to head injury, infection, and illness too. Delirium tremens due to alcohol withdrawal though are probably the most severe.

When someone becomes physically addicted to alcohol they change the physical make-up of their brain. Then when they try to stop drinking the brain is no longer getting what it needs to take care of the body and that is when alcohol withdrawal begins.

Alcohol withdrawal symptoms usually begin within 72 hours of the last drink and can last up to 10 days after that. Alcohol withdrawal symptoms once they begin can quickly become more severe and worsen.

  • Body tremors
  • Changes in mental function
  • Agitation, irritability
  • Confusion, disorientation
  • Decreased attention span
  • Deep sleep that lasts for a day or longer
  • Delirium
  • Excitement
  • Fear
  • Hallucinations (seeing or feeling things that are not really there)
  • Increased activity
  • Quick mood changes
  • Restlessness, excitement
  • Sensitivity to light, sound, touch
  • Stupor, sleepiness, fatigue
  • Seizures

Most common in first 12 – 48 hours after last drink

  • Usually generalized tonic-clonic seizures
  • Symptoms of alcohol withdrawal
  • Anxiety
  • Depression
  • Difficulty thinking clearly
  • Fatigue
  • Feeling jumpy or nervous
  • Feeling shaky
  • Headache
  • Insomnia (difficulty falling and staying asleep)
  • Irritability or excitability
  • Loss of appetite
  • Nausea
  • Pale skin
  • Palpitations (sensation of feeling the heart beat)
  • Rapid emotional changes
  • Sweating, especially on the palms of the hands or the face
  • Vomiting

Other symptoms that may occur:

  • •Chest pain
  • •Fever
  • •Stomach pain

And delirium tremens. Delirium tremens are a medical emergency and are one of the biggest reasons why someone who is experiencing alcohol withdrawal should seek outside help immediately if they begin experiencing any of the alcohol withdrawal symptoms mentioned above. Delirium tremens look a lot like seizures and the usual treatment for them includes the same medications that would be used to help seizures. For instance, valium, Ativan and diazepam are quite common for the treatment of delirium tremens and alcohol withdrawal in general.

Someone who is getting ready to experience delirium tremens will usually show some signs such as the following:

•Heavy sweating

•Increased startle reflex

•Irregular heartbeat

•Problems with eye muscle movement

•Rapid heart rate

•Rapid muscle tremors

The most important thing about delirium tremens is that they can be fatal. This is why it is so absolutely imperative that anyone experiencing any level of severity of alcohol withdrawal should check into an inpatient detox facility or go to the hospital. For someone who is going through the alcohol withdrawal themselves they won’t be able to help themselves should they begin to experience delirium tremens. Delirium tremens also for the person who is not medically equipped can be extremely scary. So if you begin to experience any type of alcohol withdrawal seek medical attention immediately.

If you need help with your addiction give us a call now at 1-800-984-4003.

Is Alcohol More Dangerous Than Heroin?

Is Alcohol More Dangerous Than Heroin?

Heroin is clearly a dangerous drug. It carries a certain stigma because it is illegal. And no doubt, deadly. But what about alcohol? It, too, is a drug but, it is legal. Does that mean that alcohol is any safer than other drugs like heroin?

The World Health Organization estimates that risks linked to alcohol cause 2.5 million deaths a year from heart and liver disease, road accidents, suicides and cancer — accounting for 3.8 percent of all deaths. It is the third leading risk factor for premature death and disabilities worldwide.

Let’s take a look at the effects of alcohol and heroin, respectively on both the user’s brain and physical body to see how they compare.

Alcohol Effects on the Body

Heart: Alcohol is more dangerous than heroin because it can have serious effects on physical health. And it is not just from drinking a lot over a long time; drinking too much on a single occasion can damage the heart and cause problems such as cardiomyopathy (stretching and drooping of heart muscle); arrhythmia – (irregular heart beat); stroke; high blood pressure.

Liver: Alcohol is more dangerous than heroin because heavy drinking takes a toll on the liver, which leads to a variety of problems such as fatty liver, alcoholic hepatitis, fibrosis, and cirrhosis.

Pancreas: Alcohol is more dangerous than heroin because it causes the pancreas to produce toxic substances that can eventually lead to pancreatitis, dangerous inflammation and swelling that prevents proper digestion. This can lead to malnutrition and therefore affecting brain function.

Cancer: Drinking too much makes alcohol more dangerous than heroin because it increases your risk of developing certain cancers, including cancers of the mouth, esophagus, throat, liver, and breast.

Immune System: Drinking too much can weaken your immune system, making your body more susceptible to disease.  Chronic drinkers are more likely to contract diseases than people who do not drink too much.  Drinking a lot on a single occasion reduces the body’s ability to fight off infections, even up to 24 hours after getting drunk.

Alcohol Effects on the Brain

Looking at the effects on the brain from long-term drinking, it is clear: alcohol is more dangerous than heroin. Extended alcohol consumption can lead to something known as “wet brain.” It is a chronic and debilitating syndrome characterized by persistent learning and memory problems. Patients are forgetful and easily frustrated. They experience difficulty with walking and coordination. Although these patients have problems recalling old information, it is their difficulty in forming new information that is the most striking.

People may not be aware that prolonged liver dysfunction can harm the brain, leading to a serious and potentially fatal brain disorder known as hepatic encephalopathy, which causes changes in sleep patterns, mood, and personality; anxiety and depression; severe cognitive effects such as shortened attention span; and problems with coordination. Alcohol–damaged liver cells allow excess amounts of these harmful byproducts to enter the brain, thus harming brain cells.

Heroin Effects on the Body

Chronic users may develop collapsed veins, infection of the heart lining and valves, abscesses, constipation and gastrointestinal cramping, and liver or kidney disease. Pulmonary complications, including various types of pneumonia, may result from the poor health of the user as well as from heroin’s effects on breathing.

In addition to the effects of the drug itself, street heroin often contains toxic contaminants or additives that can clog blood vessels leading to the lungs, liver, kidneys, or brain, causing permanent damage to vital organs.

Heroin Effects on the Brain

Regular heroin use changes the functioning of the brain. One result is tolerance, in which more of the drug is needed to achieve the same intensity of effect. Another result is dependence, characterized by the need to continue use of the drug to avoid withdrawal symptoms.

Withdrawal Syndrome: Alcohol vs Heroin

Another indication as to the danger of alcohol is its associated withdrawal syndrome. When an alcohol-dependent person suddenly stop drinking, they are subject to many serious symptoms that can even lead to death. Heroin withdrawal, on the other hand, feels like you are dying but it isn’t actually fatal.

The MCDA Scale and Findings

In an effort to offer a guide to policy makers in health, policing, and social care, Professor David Nutt, chairman of Britain’s Independent Scientific Committee on Drugs (ISCD) and his team rated drugs using a technique called Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) which assessed damage according to nine criteria on harm to the user and seven criteria on harm to others.

Harms to the user included things such as drug-specific or drug-related death, damage to health, drug dependence and loss of relationships, while harms to others included crime, environmental damage, family conflict, international damage, economic cost, and damage to community cohesion.

Drugs were then scored out of 100, with 100 given to the most harmful drug and zero indicating no harm at all.

The scientists found alcohol was most harmful, with a score of 72, followed by heroin with a score of 55.

Therefore, their finding is that alcohol is more dangerous than heroin when the combined harms to the user and to others are assessed.

 

 

 

Sources:

www.nih.gov

www.niaaa.nih.gov

http://www.thefix.com/

www.reuters.com

www.cbsnews.com

 

 

If you need help with your addiction give us a call now at 1-800-984-4003.

Xanax and Alcohol: A Deadly Combination

Xanax and Alcohol: A Deadly Combination


In recent years, as the use of prescription medication has proliferated in the United States, so too have the abuse of and overdose from many of these substances.

Prescription-drug abuse is the fastest-growing drug problem in the U.S., says a report issued last month by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The same report states that in 2007, there were roughly 27,000 unintentional deaths from drug overdoses—or one death every 19 minutes.

But of all the things that people ingest, there are few combinations more life-threatening than alcohol and Xanax, a benzodiazepine in the class of sedatives such as Valium and Klonopin.

What Makes Xanax and Alcohol a Deadly Combination?

When taken together, Xanax and alcohol have what’s known as an additive effect, which means that in the presence of Xanax, alcohol is made more potent than it would be alone.

Both Xanax and alcohol work by depressing the central nervous system of the body, reducing the activity of several mental functions, such as thought, memory, coordination, and respiration.

Alcohol alone doesn’t have that limit, because often times people will pass out before they drink enough alcohol for it to be lethal. When you take the two together and you have a totally different picture – Xanax and Alcohol: a deadly combination.

Prescription drugs and alcohol can be a dangerous combination. Alcohol interacts with anti-anxiety drugs such as Xanax, intensifying the drugs’ sedative effects, causing drowsiness and dizziness, and making falls and accidents more likely. A 2010 study published in the Canadian Journal of Public Health reported that automobile drivers were much more likely to weave and speed if they were under the influence of drugs like Xanax in addition to alcohol than if they had consumed alcohol alone.

How it Works

Your usual three drinks is actually like drinking six. And because of the additive effect of combining the two substances, it becomes impossible to know just how your body will absorb the alcohol you’ve ingested. Throw in other factors—sleep deprivation, an empty stomach, a cold—and the mixture is made all the more unpredictable and deadly.

Xanax and alcohol is the most deadly combination because it can cause amnesia. So not only is it does this combination affect respiratory function, the amnesic effect it causes is just as deadly. People die accidentally in the truest sense of the word: they don’t remember how many drinks they had, or how many pills they took.

 Why Xanax, in particular

In fact, it is this same rapid action that makes Xanax the most addictive of the benzodiazepines, many neuroscientists believe, providing the sensation of a high more so than other drugs of its class.

Other people start taking prescription drugs just to get high, perhaps in part because they have the false notion that prescription drugs are safer to experiment with than are illicit drugs.

Any benzodiazepine is highly dangerous in combination with alcohol, but Xanax is perhaps the most dangerous, because it is more fast-acting than the others. Because Xanax and alcohol both work on the brain at a rapid-fire pace, their mutually enhancing effect is bolstered compared to slower-acting benzodiazepines, which peaks in the brain more slowly, after the effect of the alcohol may have already begun to decline.

 

 

 

Sources:

http://www.thedailybeast.com

http://www.cdc.gov/

http://www.scientificamerican.com

 

If you need help with your addiction give us a call now at 1-800-984-4003.

5 best college drinking games

College Drinking Games

Every college student on every college campus would argue what the best college drinking games are. Not only that but for every college drinking game there is a different variation depending on how you were taught to play it and how you are now passing it. Needless to say though, there are definitely some drinking games that are better than others. Here are the 5 best college drinking games and we think you probably already know what is number one.

5.) Beer pong: Beer pong requires a ping pong table, ping pong balls, some red solo cups and quite a bit of alcohol. Beer pong will probably always be THE BEST college drinking game. In beer pong, opposing teams, usually two, stand at opposite ends of the ping pong table with nine cups set up in a triangle in front of them. Each team tries to bounce pin pong balls into the opposing teams cups filled with beer forcing the opposing team to drink. Beer pong is fast paced and is fun for the “audience” too. The rules of beer pong vary slightly but this is definitely number one of the list of the 5 best college drinking games.

4.) You may know it as circle of death, waterfalls or ring of fire: This college drinking game has so many names but for the sake of keeping it simple we are going to call it Ring of Fire. Ring of fire requires a deck of cards and a lot of alcohol. Players sit in a circle and draw cards that are spread out in the middle of the circle of players; that’s why its name the ring of fire. Each card has a corresponding rule the players must follow. For example when a 6 is drawn it means all the chicks have to drink. “Six, chicks.” Then the next person will draw a card with a corresponding rule. This is the one of the best college drinking games because the rules can be changed to fit whatever and it can become totally hilarious. Only reason it doesn’t beat out beer pong as THE BEST is because it isn’t that great for onlookers.

3.) Quarters: Quarters is a quick and simple way to get drunk. This is what makes it one of the best college drinking games for those looking to get messed up quick. The point is to try and bounce a quarter into a shot glass and assign drinks. If you miss the shot you take a drink. Quarters is one of the best college drinking games, but it does take practice.

2.) Asshole: Asshole is one the best college drinking games but it is complicated and frustrating. A deck of cards is dealt out to players. In the first round the goal is to be the first player to get rid of all their cards. The first player to get rid of all their cards is the President next round, the last player to get rid of all their cards is the Asshole. The President creates hilarious moments for players and onlookers. The goal is always to become President next the round. Asshole can go on for a long time which makes it one of the best college drinking games.

1.) Never Have I Ever: Never have I ever mixes drinking, low inhibitions and sharing of personal information. Players take turns making “never have I ever…” (Example: Never have I ever been to France-they are usually more sexual in context when actually playing) statements and players who have done those activities have to drink. This is one of the best college drinking games because it can be really hilarious and you can learn some occasional disgusting facts about your friends. The only time this best college drinking game gets dull is when you run out of “never have I ever…” statements.

For more about college and drinking, check out the Top 5 Party Schools or Florida’s Hottest Spring Break Destinations

If you need help with your addiction give us a call now at 1-800-984-4003.

Alcohol Addiction Facts

                                     Alcohol Addiction FactsEven though alcoholism is the most common addiction in the United States, many people are unaware of the alcohol addiction facts. Everyone should have an understanding of the following alcohol addiction facts so that we can work together to move towards a cure for this deadly disease.

  • Alcohol addiction or alcoholism is a disease; it is not a moral failing or a matter of will power.
  • Even though it is illegal to consume alcohol before the age of 21, roughly 5,000 people under the age of 21 die from an alcohol-related incident including car crashes, homicides, suicides, alcohol poisoning, and other related injuries every year in the United States.
  • It is estimated that 20% of teens in the United States can be labeled as “problem drinkers”. In fact, it is estimated that 25 percent of the alcohol consumed in the United States, is done so by those too young to purchase it legally.
  • Another important alcohol addiction fact is that alcohol is one of, if not the most, dangerous drugs to quit. One out of three people suffering from severe alcohol addiction who try to quit without medical help will die due to complications from alcohol withdrawal. All those who are suffering from alcohol addiction should seek medical help to quit.
  • It is possible to have a problem with alcohol, even when it has not progressed to the point of alcoholism. Problem drinking means you drink too much at times, causing repeated problems, but you are not completely dependent on drinking. Both problem drinkers and alcoholics should seek professional help.
  • One of the most important alcohol addiction facts is that alcohol addiction has little to do with what kind of alcohol you drink, how long you have been drinking, or even exactly how much you drink.
  • Alcohol addiction affects people from every type of background, but here are several characteristics that can increase the risk that a person will develop alcoholism. These are known in the scientific community as “risk factors.
  • Children of those who suffer from alcohol addiction are 4 times more likely than others to suffer from alcohol addiction themselves.
  • “Binge Drinking” defined as five or more drinks in a sitting for men and four for women, can increase chances of developing alcohol addiction

These alcohol addiction facts can seem scary but the important point is that there is help available. Thousands of facilities in the United States offer alcohol and drug rehabilitation and treatment services, ranging from short-term residential or in-patient hospitalization to long-term, outpatient counseling and therapy. Treatment can be effective in helping people learn to live a life of sobriety. There is no cure for alcohol addiction, but the disease can be treated and people can live in remission. It is possible for those with an alcohol addiction to recover and live a normal life. If you or someone you know has an alcohol addiction, you should seek help from addiction professional as soon as possible. Untreated alcohol addiction can be deadly.

http://drugabuse.com/library/get-the-facts-on-alcohol-abuse/

 

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