Instead, this test can point doctors and medical experts in the right direction. It looks at things like liver and kidney functions and blood sugar levels. Peripheral neuropathy from alcoholism is more common than many people realise—and it’s not something to be ashamed of.

Medical Reviewer:

• Some people with alcohol use disorder also have inadequate food intake.
• Engaging in regular physical activity and avoiding tobacco and other toxins can also support nerve repair and improve overall health, influencing the recovery timeline for neuropathic symptoms.
• However, folate or B12 shortage can occur when you don’t get enough vitamins and minerals from your usual diet.
• Addressing these issues through comprehensive treatment is essential for managing the condition and improving the overall well-being of those affected.

There’s a lot of discussion and debate regarding treatment for alcoholic neuropathy. The discussion focuses on the ability for treatment to reverse the Alcoholics Anonymous effects of the condition. While there are lots of different treatment methods, there’s one thing in common. Some doctors feel so strongly about this that they refuse to continue treatment for a person that doesn’t restrict alcohol consumption.

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This means that people addicted to inhalants, like sniffing glue or paint thinner, are also at risk for neuropathy. It’s important to realize that, whatever the primary cause of neuropathy, drinking alcohol contributes to the condition and makes it worse. Also, it is important that people do not use other conditions as an excuse to keep drinking. If a person does not stop drinking, the issues connected to alcoholic neuropathy will fail to recover and may become permanent.

Can Alcohol-Related Neuropathy Be Cured? What Does Treatment Look Like?

Symptoms include burning pain in the body, hyperalgesia (increased sensitivity to pain), and allodynia (a condition in which normal stimulus, like a soft touch, produces pain). Yes, long-term excessive alcohol consumption may lead to peripheral neuropathy, which can cause pain in your feet. Finding a substance abuse treatment program that can offer rehabilitation for an alcohol use disorder is just as important as finding health care for alcoholic neuropathy. Alcoholism often leads to poor dietary habits and the impairment of nutrient absorption in the digestive system.

• Both the toxicity of alcohol and nutritional deficiencies have been linked with alcoholic neuropathy, which is one of the most common but least recognizable consequences of heavy alcohol use.
• So, before you have another drink, you may want to learn a bit more about this disease first.
• Alcoholic neuropathy is not typically fatal, but it can cause serious complications due to loss of nerve function.

Elevated levels of toxins in the body and inflammation caused by alcohol  may be responsible for harming the nerves and hindering their ability to function properly. Alcohol can result in neuropathy because it has a alcohol neuropathy direct toxic effect on the nerves, causing damage and dysfunction. Alcoholism also often leads to nutritional deficiencies which may impair nerve function. The first step in treating alcoholic neuropathy is abstaining from alcohol, sometimes through rehab.