Muscle damage

[satori]

Hi sporty folks,

I picked up a copy of New Scientist (10th Feb edition) today and there was a REAL scary article on the damage done to the body by acetaldehyde - which is a byproduct of drinking alcohol.
Acetaldehyde is a particualrly nasty poison and is responsible for us feeling so bad when we have a hangover.

But one part of the article which interested me most was the fact that:

"It is a common misconception that the brain and the liver are the two organs most affected by alcohol abuse" " Muscle damage is the most common" "Among alcoholics, muscle damage is five times more common than cirrhosis of the liver"

So, if you are a sportsman or woman, and you have not been performing so well while drinking - perhaps this is one of the reasons.

Another very good reason to stop drinking!!!!

BTW - the article went on for four pages about the damage to just about every organ in the body caused by acetakdehyde - including the fact that it is a carcinogen.

I have now even more resolve - I didn't realise quite how much damage I was doing to myself until I read this article - you guys might want to read it too if you see a copy - VERY scary uch: !


Take care

Satori

[AAthlete]

Muscle damage

Powerful info, Satori - thanks for sharing.

I also knew that it wasn't the exercise itself that was making you healthier and fitter, it was the time after the exercise when you body was rebuilding/repairing itself that made you stronger.

So, all those times that I would 'reward' myself for a great workout or race by drinking - I was actually destroying the benefits of the very thing I was celebrating!!

[xtexan]

Muscle damage

While I have not read that article, I believe it.

My gains in muscle mass and strength have been slow, and arduous. If I had not spent over three decades of my life drinking, I would probably be stronger now.

I remember when I was in my late twenties, all I had to do was just look at a dumbell, or barbell, and I would put on muscle mass. Now that the hormones and chemistry of youth are heading downhill fast, it takes a little more (lot more) work to make a gain.

One thing that I will do some research on, is the relationship between l-glutamine as both an anti-craving supplement, and a muscle cell fuel. I take 5 grams of l-glutamine, and 5 grams of creatine before my weight workout sessions. That is a pretty good dose, but I believe it helps the aging body to repair the damage that all my drinking did over the years. I have been taking these doses now for the last several months with no apparent ill affects. Certainly better than an 18 pack, a fifth of Scotch, or 4 liters of wine at a setting.

The point is, that I am not about to give up. Even at 50 years old, you can come back from the downward spiral. I am proof of that. Even after 35 years of binge drinking.

That acetaldehyde is truly nasty stuff. An oxidizer of epic proportion. Hence, a massive regimen of anti-oxidants. The first things I noticed in the first couple of months of sobriety, was the yellowish color of my eyes, skin, and hair went away. Liver healing. Many wrinkles in my skin, and a lot of liver spot blotches are fading as well. I have a picture of myself I took from a year and a half ago, and the differences are apparent. Even my nose is getting back to normal. It was a bit swollen and red.

So, if my story is any hope, your body can heal up. The exercise I believe has accelerated many of those repairs.

Be well.

Neil

[Accountable for Me]

Muscle damage

Satori, where was this article published? Or what paper? I would be interested in reading it - if it were online that is. (Most papers have articles posted online).

Neil - it is good to hear how the body can recover from the damages of alcohol. Thanks to you and the other long term abstainers, we have real people posting real progress! Thanks a million. Also, you have mentioned meditation several times in your posts. I am interested in taking up meditation as part of my program as well. Is there anything you would recommend to a beginner?

[xtexan]

Muscle damage

Accountable:

A few members here have reported that the CenterPointe program "Holosync" CD's are excellent for them. My sister uses the "Holosync" meditation CD's for her particular problems, and that is how I found out about them in the beginning.

You might want to peruse my posting in Holistic Healing section called "Brain Waves and Booze".

I have several links posted in that thread, in an essay I wrote about my meditation methods, including the one to get to the CenterPoint website free introductory CD.

I also have the set of tapes from the "HemiSync" system, and use those occasionally. Anyway, check out the thread, and I give a quite detailed explanation of my meditation system and methods.

Be well.

Neil

[Accountable for Me]

Muscle damage

Thanks Neil. I appreciate the info. I will check out your post as mentioned above.

[Rags]

Muscle damage

Sartori, Thanks.
My NS hasn't arrived yet, but will read up when I get it. What about the article 2 weeks ago about cancer and mitochondria. What a breakthrough.

Accountable, it is a weekly magazine called New Scientist. Larger newsagencies carry it. It's a great mag. Been getting it since 1975.

[Lou]

Muscle damage

Thanks for the info....could explain why my body just isnt responding as quickly as it used to to my new excercise routines....maybe even the reason that instead of losing weight after doing a really strenuous cardio workouts and a lot of swimming plus doing weights too that i am acualy putting on weight rather than losing it and not becoming more toned..maybe my poor muscles are damaged that much that they cant take it...id like to read the article but im not sure if i can get it here???

[Rags]

Muscle damage

Dear Lou,
New Scientist is a British magazine,published weekly in London. You should be able to get it at any larger newsagent. Or go to New Scientist - International News, Ideas, Innovation where you'll find articles from back issues.

[CKD]

Muscle damage

xtexan;94352 wrote: While I have not read that article, I believe it.

My gains in muscle mass and strength have been slow, and arduous. If I had not spent over three decades of my life drinking, I would probably be stronger now.

I remember when I was in my late twenties, all I had to do was just look at a dumbell, or barbell, and I would put on muscle mass. Now that the hormones and chemistry of youth are heading downhill fast, it takes a little more (lot more) work to make a gain.

One thing that I will do some research on, is the relationship between l-glutamine as both an anti-craving supplement, and a muscle cell fuel. I take 5 grams of l-glutamine, and 5 grams of creatine before my weight workout sessions. That is a pretty good dose, but I believe it helps the aging body to repair the damage that all my drinking did over the years. I have been taking these doses now for the last several months with no apparent ill affects. Certainly better than an 18 pack, a fifth of Scotch, or 4 liters of wine at a setting.

The point is, that I am not about to give up. Even at 50 years old, you can come back from the downward spiral. I am proof of that. Even after 35 years of binge drinking.

That acetaldehyde is truly nasty stuff. An oxidizer of epic proportion. Hence, a massive regimen of anti-oxidants. The first things I noticed in the first couple of months of sobriety, was the yellowish color of my eyes, skin, and hair went away. Liver healing. Many wrinkles in my skin, and a lot of liver spot blotches are fading as well. I have a picture of myself I took from a year and a half ago, and the differences are apparent. Even my nose is getting back to normal. It was a bit swollen and red.

So, if my story is any hope, your body can heal up. The exercise I believe has accelerated many of those repairs.

Be well.

Neil

xtexan, how did you quit after all of that. I am in that position right now also. I want to quit more than you can imagine. I was once almost a pro bodybuilder, and I am losing muscle daily.

[Accountable for Me]

Muscle damage

Thanks Rags for the information. We have the magazine here in our shops. I always 'dismissed' it because it was called "New Scientist". The name reminded me of the whole Scientology thing. I will check it out. I guess the ol' saying is true "Never judge a book by it's cover!"

[xtexan]

Muscle damage

CKD;94634 wrote: xtexan, how did you quit after all of that. I am in that position right now also. I want to quit more than you can imagine. I was once almost a pro bodybuilder, and I am losing muscle daily.

Hi CKD, and welcome to the forum!

You ask how did I just stop cold?

In December of 2005 I got sick. I got bronchitis, which turned into pneumonia in just 24 hours. My smoking and drinking was the cause, and I knew it. So laying there in bed, gasping through the phlegm for any air I could get, I knew that if I did not stop, I would die soon.

Pneumonia kills a lot of people that abuse alcohol. My immune system was for crap. After passing out from a coughing fit, and wondering if I would see the next day, something clicked in my head. It said STOP smoking those GD cigarettes, and stop drinking that GD booze. I knew from previous attempts at moderating, or drinking like a "normal" person, that it was just not an option in my case.

So, I was on a mission to get as far away from being DEAD as possible, as fast as possible. It takes one good scare, made crystal clear. Mind was made up, and I ain't turning back, God help me.

Be well.

Neil

[Lou]

Muscle damage

Thanks Rags x

[Rags]

Muscle damage

Hi Sartori,
My NS arrived in the post to-day. Read the article straight away. Very interesting, and scary.
Can't see how the chewing gum will help that much as it is clearing acetaldehyde only from mouth and saliva, where it is anyway, whereas the liver is getting it at stomach/blood level. I have a medical research scientist friend at Oxford Uni. I shall email her and ask her to read article and also let me know what she's heard about it. Note the article doesn't talk about tissue recovery if you cut down/stop intake. Oh joy, this means I and many others have probably done irreparable damage to ourselves.
Happy Prasrabdhi.
Rags.

[Mary Anne]

Muscle damage

NS online?

Hi,

I am trying to get to the new scientist online, .....is it the Feb edition?? Iam anxious to see if all the damage is reversible, as I too have been lifting weights without any show of muscle tone, especially in my back(which the muscles hurt all the time!....less since I stopped the booze )

Thanks for all the info guys, I will let you know if I cannot find it

Love you all!:goodjob:

Mary Anne