Reaction of the Body to Alcohol

Whichever type of alcohol you consume, they all cause burns, not literally but they give a burning sensation. In extreme cases like dry shots, you might feel like your mouth and the entire throat are being scalded. The reason why alcohol burns you when you drink it is because it messes with the heat receptors found in the mouth, which normally react to heat from boiling water and/or fire.These cells, known as VR1 receptors, usually react when exposed to heat by shooting upsignals that there is something to the brain. You eventually feel the nerve as a burning sensation and sometimes pain. This is basically the same sensation that you experience after consuming some spicy sauce.So now, what is the actual reason why alcohol burns you when you drink it? Let us try to answer this. Alcohol lowers the threshold of temperature that the receptors need to send the signal, which is normally 42 degrees to 32 degrees.Normal body temperature is around 37 degrees. This leaves youfeeling like the alcohol is actually burning you. Even if the alcohol is chilled, it will still cause a sting on cuts. This explains why water causes no stings on a cut since there is no reaction involved.Alcohol drains water from the skin cells causing them to dry out and they indicate the stress as a burning sensation. Once you take alcohol, it makes you feel warm because when consumed, it acts as a drug and causes the blood vessels to expand. This causes more blood to flow to the skin, feet and hands and leave you with a warm sensation. The inflammation of the cells generatesheat, which is the source of the burning and stinging sensation and the fact that the threshold of the receptors has been lowered too much leads to pain.However, this feeling of warmth does not mean you really are warm! Blood act as a medium for transferring heat, and if it is at the body surface, then this means that you are losing heat. It is therefore very risky for someone suffering from hypothermia to take alcohol. However, if you are just cold and in a warm place, taking shots of spirit to keep you warm and make you comfortable does not do you harm.Exposing these receptors to alcohol is basically the same as applying an antiseptic on a cut. There are people who believe that alcohol-based disinfectants are the best for applying to a cut. This could never be more wrong! What these chemicals actually do is that they kill all cells, including the good healthy ones. Don't you think that this is the reason why you feel that burning pain? Therefore, as much as they clear off the bad bacteria, they also slow down the whole process of healing. If you want the best and sure most healing process, do yourself a favor and leave antiseptics out of the question. Just run some clean, cold water over the wound. By so doing, youget to clean the wound without killing any healthy cells.Right now, I would like to invite you to access and read new information about theEat What You Loveand as well as aboutRelationship ArticlesArticle Source:http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Nguyen_Kinh_Luan/1956160