Alcoholism, which occurs in adolescence, that is, in children 13-18 years old, is called early alcoholism. It is considered that at such a young age the symptoms of alcoholism develop much faster than in adults, and the course of the disease is more malignant.
The anatomical and physiological features of the young organism are in some sense a favorable soil, which is why the disease develops rapidly. In this case, an important role is played by the form of alcohol consumption, the degree of alcoholism, for example, the frequency and dose of consumption, the reaction of the body to alcoholic beverages and so on.
Children's alcoholism has its own peculiarities of percolation. When ingested, alcohol first penetrates into the bloodstream, into the liver and brain. Due to the fact that the central nervous system is not fully formed, it becomes vulnerable to the action of ethanol. As a result of the action of ethanol, there is a disruption in the formation and differentiation of neurons, which means that the personality of a person suffers, intellect, abstract and logical thinking, emotional sphere, memory, etc. are violated. Thus, under the influence of alcoholic drinks, almost all systems of the organism are disrupted. Statistics show that of all the poisonings of children and adolescents, five to seven percent is accounted for specifically by alcohol poisoning. Intoxication in children and adolescents occurs very quickly, while it can be completed with stun and, in rare cases, coma. There is an increase in body temperature, glucose and blood pressure, while the level of white blood cells, on the contrary, decreases. Excitation, which is caused by alcoholism, is of a short-term nature and quickly passes into a deep sleep. Quite often there are convulsions, and sometimes a fatal outcome is possible. In rare cases, violations of the psyche are recorded - hallucinations and delusions.
The main mechanism of the psychological nature of drinking alcohol in childhood and adolescence is considered psychological imitation, removal or reduction of asthenic conditions and deformation of the person with a propensity to receive alcohol.
There are several periods in the development of dependence on alcohol in these age groups. First, there is an addiction to alcohol, some adaptation. At this stage an important role is played by the environment, in particular the family, peers and school. The duration of this stage is up to six months.
In the second stage, the child or teenager performs a relatively regular intake of alcoholic beverages. The multiplicity and dose of alcohol in this case are growing. The duration of the second stage is about a year. It is believed that if you stop drinking alcohol during this period, you can achieve a good therapeutic effect.
The next stage is mental dependence. Duration - from a couple of months to several years. At the same time the child actively promotes the reception of alcoholic beverages in any quantity, at any time and of any quality. The child simply loses quantitative control. Tolerance to alcohol increases several times. There are periods of constant consumption of alcohol-containing beverages. This period is considered the initial stage of chronic alcoholism.
The last stage is directly considered a period of chronic alcoholism. In this period the abstinence syndrome has already been formed, which sometimes is expressed in mild form of vegetative-somatic disorders. Abstinence has a shorter duration than in adults and occurs after drinking a large dose of alcohol.
The fifth stage is characterized by the same signs as the alcoholism of an adult. A significant difference is only the rapid development of dementia. Children very quickly become rude, antisocial, dysphoric. They degrade intellectually, memory and emotional disorders are observed.
Formation of alcoholism in children usually occurs within three to four years. The abstinence syndrome develops one to three years after the child began to consume alcoholic beverages. The peculiarity of childhood alcoholism is that it is very dependent on premorbid features.