IOO APPLIED PHYSIOLOGY 



permits fermentation to take place. Thus alcohol disturbs 

 every action of the stomach, and often produces the worst 

 forms of indigestion. 



It is true that a little weak alcoholic drink will not produce all these 

 evil effects at once. Herein lies the danger. Alcohol is a deceitful 

 thing. Though the stomach gives notice that it is abused by the 

 drink, yet the mysterious thirst demands still more alcohol, and bribes 

 its victim with the memory of its pleasant sensation. So the poor 

 stomach suffers time after time, and before long becomes permanently 

 crippled. 



143. Protection against alcohol. When an alcoholic drink is 

 taken into the mouth, it irritates the mucous membrane. This causes 

 the saliva to flow and dilute the alcohol, so that at any one time it can 

 do very little direct harm. In the stomach it causes the gastric juice 

 to flow in the same way, and thus it soon becomes dilute and has little 

 direct effect. Even if the pepsin should separate from the gastric juice, 

 in a little while the ferment will dissolve in the increased quantity of 

 juice and perform its work well again. Nature may thus protect the 

 body for some time, but it cannot remove the danger. 



144. Effects of alcohol upon the intestine. By the time 

 alcohol reaches the intestine, it is usually too dilute to 

 produce much direct harm. But if it has deranged stom- 

 ach digestion, the work of digesting the food falls upon 

 the intestine. Thus intestinal digestion may be imperfect. 

 Alcohol itself is probably not changed by digestion. In its 

 diluted form it is quickly absorbed. Even when a large 

 amount is absorbed, little or none can be found in any of 

 the tissues or blood tubes. The only probable way of its 

 disappearance is by oxidation before it can pass beyond 

 the liver. 



145. Effects of alcohol upon the liver. Alcohol affects 

 the liver in three ways. In the first place strong drink is 

 apt to induce stomach and intestinal indigestion. Then 

 the liver must do an extra amount of work in completing the 

 imperfect digestion. Thus biliousness is often produced. 



