WHAT IS AN ALCOHOLIC? - Herbert W Armstrong - May 1982

Herbert W Armstrong

Derek Rutherford, director of Britain's National Council on Alcoholism, was interviewed by senior writer John Ross Schroeder on the abuse of alcohol. What is the difference between a drunk and an alcoholic? A person who is drunk has become temporarily incapacitated by his alcohol intake. In other words alcohol has become for him a depressant of the central nervous system. If you have taken a certain amount of alcohol, you will have depressed and anesthetized the central nervous system. You first begin to lose your judgment. Then you begin to slur your speech. But remember it is judgment first- your inability to make decisions in a sober manner. Then comes your speech and gait. If you are really drunk, you will find you have difficulty putting in your ignition key or door key. If you weren't an alcoholic and were an average person not used to taking alcohol and you have drunk a bottle of whisky, you could go into a coma- and possibly die. That is drunkenness. - Information Supplied By: Herbert W Armstrong Library