Sensitivity to Alcohol: A Condition That Should Not Be Underestimated

Alcohol sensitivity is a more common condition than you might think. Also because many misunderstand it, deriving the disturbances from a hypothetical inability to "hold up the alcohol". In reality, it is a condition that can have harmful consequences, both on the state of health and on the probability of incurring any type of accident (not just road accidents). Obviously, the question involves only those who habitually consume alcohol, although the probability of taking minimum doses also concerns those who do not drink alcohol but consume certain types of confectionery production. Think of the classic babà, which contains rum.

The sensitivity to alcohol, it is good to clarify it, has nothing to do with the concept of allergy. The latter is a potentially fatal condition, and which in any case gives way to more complex and more serious symptomatology. This does not mean, of course, that alcohol sensitivity should be seriously considered and must be subject to in-depth analysis, as well as countermeasures aimed at reducing the effects. In any case, it is a sensitivity that presents discontinuity features with respect to the most common food sensitivities, such as that of lactose gluten, especially for the nature of the symptoms, which are only partially gastrointestinal.

If you love alcohol but complain about the symptoms described above, ignoring the disorder can lead to very serious consequences. First of all, it compromises the quality of life in those moments generically dedicated to entertainment; secondly, there is an increased risk of accidents. The advice is, first of all, to promptly check the presence of a more or less marked sensitivity to alcohol. How to do? Simply contact private specialized centres. The National Health System, in fact, does not provide diagnostic analyzes concerning this type of sensitivity.

What are the symptoms of alcohol sensitivity? In reality, at least partially, they are superimposable to those attributed to the generic condition of "inability to withstand alcohol". That is, those who are sensitive to alcohol tend to get drunk earlier and with very low quantities of alcohol. The condition, at this level of gravity, is often underestimated, also because it is the object of irony from friends, who often with a joke show a sort of envy for the ability to reach the state of intoxication by spending little.

Most often, the symptomatology is severe: sudden redness of the skin, nausea, intense headache, intestinal pain occur. An important alarm bell is also represented by the runny nose. Alcohol sensitivity is a genetic disorder. Those suffering from this condition, in fact, cannot produce sufficient quantities of the alcohol dehydrogenase enzyme, which is precisely responsible for the absorption of ethanol. Alcohol remains in the bloodstream and produces symptoms related to the state of drunkenness for a much longer time and, above all, following the ingestion of modest quantities of alcohol.

Pay attention to who you are addressing. Some centres may prove to be inefficient, while others are unnecessarily expensive. Luckily I know a centre that shines both for convenience and for competence. It is Lifebrain, who, among other things, proposes an innovative test: the client-patient receives a kit with a buccal swab at home, uses it according to the instructions and waits for the courier to arrive and take it back. After seven days, he can read the report directly online, in his private area within the site. Seeing is believing!