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Wednesday, October 14, 2009

The Myths Of Alcohol Use In Ghana

Alcohol, an oxygenated hydrocarbon, is both a food and a drug. It is food because it gives some energy when the body works on it, even though more energy than what it gives is required to break down its waste.

It is a drug because it affects the body chemically and the body breaks it down. Alcohol is said to be psychoactive as it alters the structure and function of the brain to produce its mind, altering effects such as mood changes and social disinhibition by removing shyness and causing ‘talkativeness’.

In Ghana, a lot of misconceptions, which I refer to as myths, surround the (mis)use of alcohol. These misconceptions are explored in the following paragraphs. . . . . .
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