The Causes of Alcohol Dependence

(Addiction-It May Not Be What You Think!)

By Dr. Mark Light of Chico Integrative Health

A wide range of issues are related to alcohol dependence: binge drinking, disturbing changes in personality, drunken driving, liver failure, disease, and death. Some believe that drinking problems are the result of a character flaw or poor choices. Others insist that alcoholism is an allergy.

NAET, the primary treatment offered at Chico Integrative Health, views alcohol addiction not as a character flaw but as an imbalance, which can be healed with proper care. The bodies of alcoholics are simultaneously intolerant of and physically dependent on alcohol. This is often caused by allergies to B vitamins, sugar, yeast, and alcohol. Dr. Devi Nambudripad describes alcohol addiction in Say Goodbye to Illness:

“When the nerves cannot get adequate nutrition, [they] become shaky and unhappy. When the body is allergic to sugar, it cannot be absorbed through the normal digestive processes. Alcohol is able to skip the normal digestive process and part of it will be absorbed through osmosis (absorbing through the stomach lining) into the blood circulation. Momentarily, alcoholics feel better soon after they drink. This is due to the action of the sugar providing a sudden dose of energy and increasing the energy in the nervous system. When the tired brain gets a quick dose of sugar (from the alcohol), it will temporarily satisfy the partial need of the brain and it will be utilized for energy functions. …The brain gets to know this new way of acquiring sugar for its needs and issues repeated commands to bring more alcohol into the system. This will drive the person to drink more and more, leading to addiction.”

Sadly, there has been little success in traditional medical treatment of alcoholism: 80 percent of alcoholics receiving treatment relapse within two years. Among sober addicts who depend on 12step or rehabilitation programs, the symptoms of addiction continue: migraines, backaches, insomnia, depression, and anxiety. These symptoms are frequently so debilitating that they cause addicts to relapse.

Many of the symptoms that drive people to drink can be alleviated by B vitamins, which are crucial to nervous system functioning. However, if there is an allergy to B vitamins, causing the body to reject them, the first course of action is to address this allergy. This is why NAET practitioners test for B vitamin allergies when treating this illness. Once this allergy is cleared, the individual can benefit from B vitamins, causing brain and nervous system cells to crave vitamins instead of alcohol. Meanwhile, the practitioner can continue further treatments related to the alcohol addiction.

The connection between alcohol, nutrition, and allergies is also supported by the work of Dr. Joan Mathews Larson, PhD (author of Seven Weeks to Sobriety). She classifies drinkers into six biotypes: types of biological conditions that can predispose individuals toward alcohol dependence. Like NAET practitioners, Dr. Mathews Larson found that certain people were likely to have problems with alcohol because of nutritional deficiencies, sugar imbalances, and allergies.

This information causes me to believe that alcoholism is not simply a character flaw. Many factors foster conditions for alcohol overuse, and this is a condition deserving compassionate care and understanding.

Alcohol Recovery: There Is Hope with NAET!

Chico Integrative Health offers a unique alcohol recovery program, which treats the root causes of addiction. We treat alcohol cravings through NAET, provide nourishment through dietary and herbal recommendations, and address sources of stressful imbalance in lifestyle.

Our Alcohol Recovery Program:

NAET: A holistic, noninvasive treatment that helps to unblock energy meridians (as understood in acupuncture) in the body so that the body can heal itself.
Nutrition: Vitamins, minerals, and amino acids.
No drug
Painfree, noninvasive healing.
Very affordable rates compared to traditional recovery programs.
The comfort of returning to your own home after treatments.
Confidentiality: 100 percent private treatment between practitioner and patient.

How NAET Works

NAET treats illnesses by removing blockages in the body’s energy pathways, called meridians. This painfree treatment allows the practitioner to identify what a person is allergic to. With the opening of the meridians, the body’s healing response operates optimally, and allergic symptoms dissipate.

In NAET, an “allergy” does not necessarily mean hay fever, sneezing, or itchy eyes. Allergies are the body’s defense against anything it is energetically protecting itself from. If the body has an allergy to B vitamins, certain meridians will be closed to the vitamins, causing the digestive organs to reject them. This nutritional lack can cause depression, fatigue, pain, and other symptoms, which alcohol can temporarily relieve. Furthermore, an allergy to alcohol itself will cause the body to crave and reject alcohol at the same time.

With NAET treatments, nutritional improvements, and support from 12-step programs, many NAET patients have successfully healed from their addiction to alcohol.

“After [Susie] was treated by NAET for sugar, B complex, and alcohol, she received relief from her chronic upper backache and migraines.”

About a 63-yearold woman who had been an alcoholic for 20 years:

“After she was treated for sugar and brandy, her constant nagging pain … disappeared. … When asked about drinking, she said that she quit drinking soon after the treatment for brandy.”

—Dr. Devi Nambudripad, founder of NAET

Alcoholism is a painful condition to live with, but there is hope. We are here to help you on your path to healing!

You can contact Dr. Light at 530-899-7300

For more information visit www.chicointegrativehealth.com