Health Science Essay

The brain is highly complex and that simply is no secret. Brain function varies significantly between both genders. These differences may be attributed to various genetic, hormonal, and environmental factors and do not reflect any overall superiority advantage to either sex (F.Zaidi, 2010). Brain development immediately starts after a baby is conceived and continues throughout a person’s life. In a healthy baby the formation of the brain is inclusive to, cells begin dividing rapidly to form one hundred billion or so neuron to migrate to various parts of the brain in the prenatal period. In the newborn and early childhood period, parts of the brain that control basic survival and reflexes are well-developed and in the first four years of life, the brain begins to increase to eighty percent of the adult weight. Finally, in the adolescence and adulthood periods, the frontal lobe is deemed responsible for judgment, planning, assessing risks, and decision making. In adulthood the brain continuously remodels itself (University of Georgia, 2013). Alcohol not only effects men and women differently, but the effects it has on infants to adults. Focusing on adolescents and adults in this segment with a slight emphasis on differential effects on men and woman and the brain allows us to understand why the BAC and legal drinking age is in effect.
Our brains are formatted and sculpted based upon our experiences. These experiences vary from person to person and significantly impact people differently. Alcohol has a deleterious influence on the brain and these effects can cause serious short and long term problems. Alcohol harmfully effects the frontal and temporal lobe structures (Hickle, 2009). When alcohol consumption is overexerted people may tend to blackout which disrupts the hippocampus merely causing sever memory loss (Hickle, 2009). In adolescence and young adults, alcohol use is prevalent among both young men and women. Even more prevalent is that binge drinking is higher among male students than females (Linda Patia Spear, 2003). Through further analysis it was shown that in 2001 thirty six percent of twelfth grade males that binge drink in comparison to twenty four percent female binge drinkers (Linda Patia Spear, 2003). In 1975 there was a twenty three percent point difference among rates of male and female binge drinkers in contrast to the twelve points in 2001 (Linda Patia Spear, 2003). Alcohol used for recreational purposes and for some habitually to cure the urge. For adolescence it has been proven that young men were more likely to using alcohol before age thirteen (Linda Patia Spear, 2003). Amongst adolescence and young adults alcohol usage can cause learning problems and instability emotionally and physically. For students this can also play a major role on the failing of test (Linda Patia Spear, 2003). Most of these damages are irreparable and can relentlessly impact the adulthood events. Furthermore, adolescence can also forego strenuous changes in behavior and psychological functioning that will also carry into adulthood.
Alcohol impacts the adult brain a bit more harshly. Going into adulthood a lot of alcohol abuse as an adolescence typically plays a huge role in the adult life. The most common experience is blackouts occurring frequently within adults, as mentioned before blackout are correlated with hippocampal where memories are stored. Woman have been reported to blackout more easily and this is because men and women metabolize alcohol differently (Department of Health and Human Services, 2004). This can also conclude the severity of memory lost within women due to alcohol related instances. Approximately eighty to ninety percent of alcoholics will develop Korsakoff’s psychosis (Department of Health and Human Services, 2004). This is a

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