Patient's question:
My relative, an older uncle, used to be very healthy and had a habit of drinking beer. However, he drank less in the past and it wasn't a big deal. Later, he gradually drank more and more, often having a strong smell of alcohol and appearing drunk. Gradually, sometimes his mental state became a bit unclear, and he had many episodes of having fits. During a severe episode, he was sent to the hospital. The doctor said it was epilepsy and that it might have been caused by long-term alcohol abuse.Doctor's answer:
The main component of alcohol is ethanol, which has a direct inhibitory effect on advanced neural activity. Although drinkers may feel comfortable and happy, their brain's training ability decreases accordingly. Epilepsy recurrence is due to the presence of "sticky pathological excitation foci" in the cerebral cortex. Epilepsy patients, when drinking beer, these "sticky pathological excitation foci" gradually become excited and spread outward. When the excitement spreads to a certain activity analyzer in the cerebral cortex, it brings about active excitement, manifesting as convulsions in a specific limb or even generalized convulsions. Epilepsy patients can, while understanding standard treatment, use folk remedies as supplementary treatment in daily life. They should also maintain a proper diet in their daily eating habits to avoid stimulating foods.