Disability Resource Directory

Health Risks for Women who Drink

 It is a fact that women process alcohol differently than men. Women who are alcoholics or even occasionally drink too much alcohol face much greater health risks than men who drink the same amounts. Although men are more likely to drink alcohol and drink in larger amounts, gender differences in body structure and chemistry cause women to absorb more alcohol, and take longer to break it down and remove.

Women who drink will get drunk faster than men and become addicted to alcohol faster than men will. In other words, upon drinking equal amounts, women will have higher alcohol levels in their blood than men, and the immediate effects will occur more quickly and last longer. These differences also make women more vulnerable to alcohol's long-term effects on their health.

Research has shown that women also suffer the consequences of abuse-related illnesses a lot quicker than men do. The effects on the liver are more severe for women than for men and women have a much higher risk of having alcohol-related liver diseases such as cirrhosis and hepatitis. Proportionately, more women die of alcohol related cirrhosis than men.

Some alcohol-related illnesses that female alcoholics are at risk for include heart disease, ulcers, reproductive problems, pancreatitis, memory loss, and osteoporosis. In the later stages of alcoholism, women often develop hypertension, anemia, and malnutrition much faster than men according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Several recent research projects have determined that excessive alcohol consumption in women can result in breast cancer and different cancers of the digestive tract. A more recent study showed that women who drink two to five alcoholic beverages per day have a 41 percent greater chance of getting breast cancer. Research has shown that excessive drinking in women can actually cause the brain to shrink.

Heavy drinking can cause menstrual disorders and fertility problems. Even drinking occasionally can cause infertility and prevent otherwise fertile women from becoming pregnant. Once pregnant, heavy drinking can often lead to miscarriage, stillbirth and even birth defects in the infant called Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. Research has shown that women who drink during pregnancy are more likely to have a baby die of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS).

There are consequences of excessive alcohol use that are not illness related but are also specific to women. Women who drink in excess or participate in binge drinking are more likely to have unprotected sex with multiple and/or unknown partners which can lead to sexually transmitted diseases and an unplanned pregnancy. Binge drinking also puts women at high risk for sexual assault and rape. This is more of a problem on college campuses.

Excessive intake of alcohol causes severe health consequences in both men and women but studies have shown that it takes less alcohol to cause the same ill effects in women. The long-term health risks coupled with the chances of death make alcoholism and binge drinking in women an activity with absolutely no benefit. Occasional drinking on holidays or special occasions is shown to be acceptable but women should take extra care to control their alcohol intake so they do not become addicted and they should never binge drink.

This article is to be used for information purposes only. It is not a diagnosis, treatment or cure for alcoholism or any other physical, emotional or mental disorder. You should always consult a health professional for proper diagnosis, treatment or cure for any physical, emotional or mental disorder.