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nursing home abuse

Society has little or no bearing on a person becoming a alcoholic. Excerpt John Wallace,PhD., was the director of New York State Board of Alcoholism Treatment and Rehabilitation in Albany. Medical Science has found that there is sound reasoning in the “Doctors Opinion” Alcoholics Anonymous pg.XXV. They have been able to determine that the physical powerlessness or allergy that Dr. Silkworth wrote about is the result of a dysfunctional liver and pancreas. These organs do not produce a sufficient quantity or quality that is needed to complete the chemical breakdown of ethanol(ETOH) through the body. The chemical break down of ethanol through the body is as follows:

1.ETHANOL-Enzymes convert the ethanol into acetaldehyde

2.ACETALDEYDE-Enzymes convert acetaldehyde into diacetic acid

3.DIACETIC ACID-Enzymes convert diacetic acid into acetate

4.ACETATE-Enzymes convert the acetate into water, carbon dioxide and sugar.

The water is put out of the body through the urinary tract the carbon dioxide through the respiratory system and the sugar is “burned up” through exercise. If a person is not a alcoholic, they can drink about one ounce of alcohol per hour to maintain the “glow” that they get from drinking.  This is not so with the alcoholic. The alcoholics liver and pancreas fail to produce sufficient enzymes to complete the decomposition(breakdown) process. The “acetate” produces the “craving” that deprives the alcoholic the ability to control the amount they drink. Society has nothing to do with this. Alcoholism is a serious and sometimes fatal disease that some people are just borne with. Though these alcoholics may spend much of there time in lots of social gatherings, and places that are sometimes unhealthy to be on a regular basis, the fact of the matter is they were what they are long before they got there.

This entry was posted on 25. May 2009 at 23:07 and is filed under Social Problems. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response or trackback from your own site.

8 Responses to “nursing home abuse”

  1. Mr. Andoscia says:
    26. May 2009 at 01:47

    Look deeper. Even the best research shows that the genetic link only explains a percentage of the variance. It’s also true that the term “alcoholic” is socially constructed. Who becomes defined as an alcoholic as opposed to just someone who abuses alcohol (and there is a difference). The medical model of alcoholism is certainly an improvement over the previous definition, but it is not true that society has nothing to do with this phenomenon. By the way, who are you?

  2. student says:
    26. May 2009 at 03:52

    A alcoholic can only be a alcoholic if he/she addmits to it. Curious as to where you got info. on society having something to do with the phenomenon of craving? How much deeper?R.Szy student (and alcoholic;>)

  3. student says:
    26. May 2009 at 04:09

    Yes you are right there is a difference between a very heavy drinker and a alcoholic.See Alcoholics Anonymous chapter 3. More About Alcoholism. R.Szy

  4. student says:
    26. May 2009 at 04:51

    I would say that a person will be considered an alcoholic dependent on society’s perception of how much they drink, how often, and their associated behavior; regardless of whether the person feels they are an alcoholic or not. The medical explanation is just that, a medical explanation, which seems to only really touch on how quickly a person would get drunk and how long they would stay drunk; not that they decided to drink to begin with. There are other factors at play such as addiction, psychological factors and social influence.
    -W3573Y

  5. Mr. Andoscia says:
    27. May 2009 at 17:03

    I’m not an expert on alcoholism, (Though I have experience dealing with addiction) so I’m just speculating, but there is a social process by which one becomes defined as being an alcoholic. It’s not just “admitting” to it as I would suggest that most alcoholics are already recognized as such long before they are willing to admit to it. Also, outside individuals do not have access to one’s genetic traits, so their definitions of alcoholism are dependent upon observed behavior. Upon entering Alcoholics Anonymous, there is no genetic testing, yet every individual in that room is an “alcoholic” regardless of their motivations for drinking. They’ve accepted the label of alcoholic, even standing in front of a group and proclaiming that they are, in fact, alcoholic. These are social factors that are relevant to the phenomenon of alcoholism. I’m not denying a genetic influence, as the research that I’m familiar with is pretty sound that there is a genetic aspect to alcoholism, but it does not explain the whole phenomenon.

    Let’s take a good, old fashioned, Conflict Perspective here. Compare two men who drink a lot. Let’s call them alcoholic. One is a working class man with a full time job. The other is a wealthy man with a trust fund. Now both drink the same amount. Both may have the same genetic traits, but they are not both equally likely to be defined as alcoholics. The working class man who, on his own, must go to work every day is much more likely to be so defined than someone who has no such responsibilities. Let’s say both men drink the same amount every day. Which man loses the highest percentage of his income, making other financial responsibilities more difficult? There is a social component here that cannot be ignored.

    Remember the “common sense notions” we dispelled on the first day of class. When you think there’s no social relationship, look again, think of the perspectives and try to apply them to what you’re studying. This issue is particularly powerful when it comes to connecting sociology to every day reality and trying to separate out the external influences. Great job!

  6. Mr. Andoscia says:
    27. May 2009 at 17:36

    http://www.roizen.com/ron/index.htm

    http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0CYZ/is_2_29/ai_89076686/

    Above are a couple of interesting links on the sociology of alcohol. They are not exactly what you are talking about, but they may be informative. The roizen link I’m a little wary of as I do not know his credentials. The info seems to be interesting, just understand that I’m not vouching for the veracity of the site. The findarticles site actually analyzes the disease model from a Kuhnian perspective, but may still be informative.

  7. studdent says:
    29. May 2009 at 03:02

    Your POST variables are: Array ( [author] => r.szy [email] => reginaszy@yahoo.com [url] => mdandsocia@edison.edu [answer] => 6 [comment] => .Nor am I a expert. Yet I know this to be true, most people can be called lots of things but that does not necessarily mean that they are what they are called. society has lots of different opinions. I was wrong in saying you cant be a alcoholic unless you admit it. I have herd so many times in the \”rooms\”(A.A meetings) that \”only you\” know if you\’re a alcoholic. So that social environment has had a major influence on me and my opinions, thoughts, and also the way I live my life to day. If social norms are,what we believe be comes real. then whether you are a alcoholic or not is really up to you. Right? Now for the good old Conflict Perspective. Comparing two men who drink a lot calling them alcoholic as you have. You have already made lots of assumptions about these men not based on there drinking, but there net worth. I hear stories of very weathly men reaching bottom way befor some working class men.People in Country Clubs frown apoun alcoholic behaivor way befor fellos in taverens will. Im really glad you reminded me about the social relationships and perspectives as well. I am eager to look at this again.Thank You. & stay tune. [submit] => Submit Comment [comment_post_ID] => 768 [hashcash_value] => 1511951588 )

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