Alcohol and substance abuse is a subject under much study and discussion, from the household to the laboratory level. This subject comes under the spotlight especially when it comes to college campuses, an environment that combines immaturity and insecurity with unprecedented freedom. The superfluous amounts of alcohol present in a college campus expose incoming freshman to an almost inescapable danger. This danger is present for different reasons, including peer pressure and the need to suppress inhibitions in a new social setting most teenagers are unaccustomed to. It is fairly well known that alcohol has adverse physical and psychological effects, but nonetheless, college students continue to abuse it. Although the reasons behind this are numerous, recent research is showing that there is a physiological component to alcohol abuse. It is likely that we become addicted to the ‘feeling’ of being drunk produced when we metabolize alcohol. Furthermore, as our alcohol consumption increases, we become increasingly sensitive to it and in turn more addicted to its effects on our bodies.

            Researchers at the University of Granada, in Spain, have concluded that there are connections between alcohol consumption and a certain regulatory steroid found in the human brain and bloodstream. This steroid, called allopregnanolone, is a product of the metabolism of progesterone, another important regulatory hormone present in all humans. Alcohol and allopregnanolone bind to certain receptors in our brains (called GABA_A) and produce sedative or anesthetic effects and anxiety relief. This receptor’s primary function is to slow down the activity of our nervous system by obstructing communication between neurons. Substances like tranquilizers, anesthetics, and alcohol bind to these receptors and further increase the sedative effects that these receptors naturally have. Furthermore, allopregnanolone is one of the most potent of the substances that can bind to these receptors, meaning that they have the biggest ability and strength in sedating and relieving anxiety.

Dr. Ortega and his group of medical researchers conducted a study with 35 females that were attended to in their hospital’s emergency room. From this group, 20 were brought in with clear symptoms of alcohol intoxication. The other 15 were non-intoxicated controls, attended to for simple sprains and mild concussions. Their blood alcohol level and drinking habits were confirmed through medical examinations and interviews. Ortega and his team found that alcohol intoxication increases the concentration of allopregnanolone in the bloodstream, thus producing an even stronger sensation of what researchers called “sedative” and “hypnotic” effects (Ortega et al, 2003). Most importantly, researchers also found that repeated alcohol usage increases the sensitivity and responsiveness of the receptors to the psychotropic effects of allopregnanolone. Thus, as alcohol is used more frequently over time, the “rewarding” feeling of tranquility that comes from drinking is successively amplified every time we abuse alcohol.

As seen in this study, serious repercussions, such as increased sensitivity and addiction, arise from alcohol intoxication. As alcohol consumption intensifies and the concentration of allopregnanolone in our body rises, the “rewarding” feeling of well-being that comes from drinking becomes increasingly pleasurable. For every successive drinking episode, our sensitivity to alcohol also increases and this feeling is magnified even further. An increased sensitivity can be of great danger, given that the same amount of alcohol will yield graver effects. Furthermore, although the study was conducted exclusively with females, progesterone and its metabolic product allopregnanolone are present in both males and females alike, thus making the implications of the study applicable to both genders. As we search for happiness in our next drink, we further debilitate ourselves with the growing sensitivity of our system to products of our own metabolism. Many of us consider ourselves social drinkers, but the dangers few of us account for lie deep inside us. The overall results of this research have impending consequences, by proposing that alcohol, although legal and socially accepted, may have similar physiologically addicting characteristics as illegal drugs like cocaine and heroin.

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