An addiction treatment program may be the number one way to stop the inevitable, which is that alcohol abuse and drug abuse will take years off of your life. Drug and alcohol addictions, even those that might be categorized as not very severe, do damage to a person’s physical health in a number of ways. Drugs and alcohol affect people’s minds, bodies, and spirits and prolonged substance abuse can lead to individuals ignoring their general health, which can exacerbate how their habits are impacting them. Substance use disorders can affect anyone, and be brought on by many factors, including physical abuse and mental health issues.
If you or anyone you know is looking for addiction resources, please call us at Muse today. No matter whether someone needs benzo addiction treatment, cocaine addiction treatment, heroin addiction treatment, or other substance abuse treatment, we have treatment programs that can help you make a positive change in your life.
Life Expectancy and Drug Use
The National Center for Drug Abuse and other organizations have used an addiction calculator to estimate some of the following sad and troubling statistics:
- One instance of drinking alcohol excessively shortens life by 6.5 hours.
- One experience with cocaine removes 6.6 hours from one’s lifespan.
- One encounter with methamphetamine reduces lifespan by 9.2 hours.
- Using heroin takes 24 hours off of one’s life.
- Self-medicating with methadone shortens life by 14.7 hours.
Addiction treatment, even for people who see their use and drinking as strictly recreational, can help greatly with eliminating life expectancy data like this being a part of your life. Drug abuse not only reduces life expectancy but also contributes to premature deaths due to overdose, too.
Long-Term Effects of Drug Abuse
Alcohol addiction takes a long time to develop relative to other types of drug addiction and can cause the following long-term health effects:
- High blood pressure
- Stroke
- Pancreatitis
- Liver disease
- Liver cancer
- Mouth cancer
- Head and neck cancer
- Breast cancer
Drug addicts who use substances other than alcohol can be affected in even more ways. Here are some of the long-term side effects drug users can face:
- A weakened immune system increases the risk of illness and infection
- Heart conditions begin with abnormal heart rates and range to much more serious issues like heart attacks collapsed veins and blood vessel infections from injected drugs
- Nausea and abdominal pain, along with other gastrointestinal issues, are common
- Increased strain on the liver, puts the person at risk of significant liver damage or liver failure
- Seizures, stroke, mental confusion, and brain damage
- Lung disease
- Problems with memory, attention, and decision-making, make daily living more difficult
- Global effects of drugs on the body, such as breast development in men and increases in body temperature, can lead to other health problems
- Specific types of substance use disorders, like prescription opioid addiction, heroin addiction, and other drug type categories can have a list of health issues all their own, too.
How Much Is Drug Addiction Costing You?
The average life expectancy for someone who regularly uses drugs or has many instances of heavy drinking is substantially lower than the general public. There is no way to get that time back. From an economical perspective, a cocaine addict can easily spend hundreds and even thousands of dollars a month in order to feed their addiction. A high-quality rehab program at a treatment center can not only bring these costs to an end but also assist with long-term solutions, like a solid relapse prevention plan.
Getting Help for Drug Addiction at Muse Treatment Center
Call us today to talk about medical detox and substance abuse and mental health treatment options. We believe that any time someone begins treatment that it is a potential life saved. Please contact Muse Addiction Treatment Center at (800) 426-1818 today. For information to learn more about your addiction recovery options at a professional rehab facility.
