146 DIGESTION 



Dr. Beaumont was able to observe the condition of the 

 stomach of Alexis St. Martin (see paragraph 28, page 128) after 

 alcoholic excesses. He states that the surface of the organ was 

 overcharged with blood, at times drops of blood exuding from 

 it ; and that its secretions became thick, unnatural, and slightly 

 tinged with blood.* It is a fact beyond dispute that other 

 organs concerned in the act of digestion, particularly the liver, 

 become diseased by the habitual use of spirituous liquors. 

 (Head Note 15.) 



55. Effects of Alcohol on the Liver. When alcohol is taken 

 into the stomach it is absorbed, and is carried by the portal 

 vein directly into the liver. The blood in the liver is thus 

 made more stimulating, and repeated stimulation produces 

 over-action, which results in impairment or loss of power to 

 secrete healthy bile. For the same reason, organic changes 

 take place more frequently in the liver, from the use of alcohol, 



welcome than after a substantial meal. So many misleading names have 

 been given to beverages (Cordials, Bitters, etc.), that many persons have 

 used them without knowing the evil consequences which follow. It is 

 made clear by recent proofs that the so-called cordials are the most rapidly 

 poisonous of all the spirituous beverages." 



* Alcohol and Digestion. "The effects of alcohol upon digestion vary 

 greatly according to the quantity imbibed ; it may act as a temporary 

 check, or in large doses it may completely arrest the digestive act : vomit- 

 ing is frequently induced the stomach thus freeing itself from the hurt- 

 ful intruder. The habitual use of spirits often gives rise to a most dis- 

 tressing form of dyspepsia." 



15. Effect upon the Appetite. " At a Peace Congress held at Frank- 

 fort, Germany, the inn-keepers found it necessary to increase the price 

 of board of the strangers attending the congress, the majority of whom 

 were teetotalers, for the reason that their appetites required an amount 

 of solid food in excess of that usually consumed by their own nationality, 

 who are habitual drinkers of beer containing appreciable amounts of 

 alcohol. 



" By direct contact, alcohol acts upon the stomach and leads to a 

 destruction of its secreting tubules. Nothing with such certainty impairs 

 the appetite and the digestive power as the continued use of strong alco- 

 holic liquids. From the stomach it is absorbed, and with its distribution 

 through the system it interferes with nutrition and leads to a diseased 

 state of the liver, kidneys, and other organs." Pavy. 



66. What effect produced on tha liver by alcohol? 



