Health Effects

The body effects section outlines the effects of alcohol on each part of the body. This section looks at the overall picture by summarising separately the effects of acute and chronic use of alcohol and how alcohol use may interact with existing health conditions and the use of medications and other drugs.

The relationship between alcohol use and some health conditions is complex. For example, drinking a small amount of alcohol may be beneficial in preventing heart disease in older adults but drinking a lot of alcohol can also damage the heart. For other health conditions, alcohol is the single cause of the condition, such as alcoholic cirrhosis of the liver, FASDFetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder Consuming alcohol while pregnant may cause significant abnormalities in the unborn, developing baby (fetal alcohol spectrum disorder). Children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, who were exposed to alcohol while in the womb, can have a range of problems including poor growth/small size, facial abnormalities, heart defects, brain damage, developmental delay and social, emotional, behavioural and mental deficits. and alcohol-induced pancreatitis. For many other health conditions, alcohol is one cause, amongst others, of the condition – for example, cancers and pneumonia.[9] Overall, alcohol is a cause of over 60 different health conditions and for almost all conditions, heavier alcohol use means higher risk of disease or injury.[9, 34]