Every thirty minutes, a person dies in an alcohol related car accident. Alcohol is the most common addictive substance used in the US, according to the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence (1). Alcoholism continues to create great burdens in societies throughout the world due to its cost or the consequences brought to families suffering from its abuse. It has a toll on people of every race, gender, age, and ethnicity. Social and moderate drinkers justify their habit by stating that a few drinks would even be good for health, yet they do not realize that their habit could lead to a destructive future addiction. In a world where alcohol is viewed as a necessity for social gatherings and environments, it is easy to overlook the risks associated with its consumption.

Research studies have shown that alcohol drinking significantly increases the risk of developing cancers throughout the body. With at least fifteen carcinogenic compounds such as ethanol, acetaldehyde, arsenic, benzene, formaldehyde, aflatoxins, (2), alcohol can have a direct carcinogenic effect on gastrointestinal cancers through indirect effects by over-expression of oncogenes in cells that trigger cancer development. In addition to a carcinogen effect, it also has a co-carcinogen effect by boosting carcinogenic properties of chemicals (3).

Upon consumption, ethanol is oxidized by bodily enzymes to form acetaldehyde, a very toxic product, during alcohol metabolism (2). High level concentrations of acetaldehyde trigger mucosal hyperproliferation when in contact with the mucosal layer of the digestive tract (4). Alcohol also causes common diseases referred directly by its name such as; alcoholic cirrhosis (alcohol is the most common causative factor of cirrhosis), alcoholic liver disease, alcoholic steatohepatitis, alcoholic cardiomyopathy, alcohol induced chronic pancreatitis, alcoholic hypoglycemia, alcoholic neuropathy, alcoholic anemia, alcoholic dementia, alcohol induced depression and seizures, etc. A beneficial effect of alcohol is that it is one of the agents which can increase the level of good cholesterol called high density lipoprotein (HDL). On the other hand it also deteriorates hypertension and leads to alcoholic cardiomyopathy with its toxicity. The question then is, “Is it safe for a person to use a toxin due to its only one beneficial effect although it is the most common factor of many diseases that are referred directly by its name?” Considering even beyond the organic effects, alcohol can also harm our relationships and cause legal problems such as driving while drunk or intoxicated.

Recently, Bagnardi et al. (5) reported a meta-analysis about alcohol drinking and cancer in a medical journal, the Annals of Oncology, showing that alcohol consumption even in small amounts increases the risk of oral cavity, pharynx, esophagus, larynx, liver, breast, and colo-rectum cancers. Most of the data derives from studies of moderate to high alcohol intake. For the first time, the researchers evaluated the association between light alcohol drinking (even 1 drink daily) and cancers by evaluating 13,814 non-unique papers identified through literature search. 222 unique papers were included in the meta-analysis, comprising ~92,000 light drinkers and 60,000 non-drinkers with cancer. Most notably, even light drinking was associated with the risk of oropharyngeal cancer, esophageal squamous cell cancer, and female breast cancer (5). These findings show that even though some findings have suggested health benefits for light alcohol consumption, risk of cancer increases with any sort of alcohol consumption.

Previously, there was some support that light consumption of alcohol – one glass for women and two glasses for men – might improve cholesterol levels, lower the risk of forming blood clots, decrease inflammation, and increase antioxidant activity. However, this mere suggestion has quickly been generalized to the overall public. Potential benefits of light drinking depends on the patients’ age, general health, lifestyle, nutrition, history of alcoholism, and many other factors. According to research evidence, any amount of alcohol consumption poses and increases the risk of alcohol linked cancer (6). Because alcohol consumption is a modifiable risk factor for cancer and many diseases, the more a person consumes alcohol products, the greater the risks are (7). These risks are also lowered by reduction in alcohol consumption; thus there is no truly “safe” level of alcohol intake (6).

Alcohol reduces the blood levels of vitamins A and E, zinc, iron and some B vitamins, including folate and thiamin, leading to vitamin deficiency, nutritional disorders, and toxicities, all of which can trigger cancer development. Alcohol suppresses the immune system and makes alcoholics more susceptible to developing cancer (8). Considering these data, drinking alcohol for older people has no potential benefits. The risk-to-benefit ratio is a little higher in younger individuals, as they have higher rates of binge drinking and acute intoxication.

The sensitive question to consider is: should individuals consciously poison themselves if they think that a toxin might have a potential beneficial effect? Can a clinician recommend a toxic drug use for its effect on nausea? For alcohol, the evidence of harmful effects is stronger than evidence of the beneficial effects (6). There are many other proven safer ways of maintaining our heart health on track, without any risk of alcohol-related hypertension, stroke, coronary artery disease, diabetes, congestive heart failure, cancer, dementia, violence, or accidents.

Then, why is alcohol so praised nowadays? The alcohol industry tries to maintain and endorse alcohol consumption. In some countries, alcohol production is very high and is an important element in the economy. Public health has a very powerful opponent known as the alcohol industry; Bagnardi et al. (5) have reported a meta-analysis published against the alcohol industry and their enormous power against public health.

Even light drinking practice may turn many vulnerable people into alcoholics. Alcoholism is a prodigious defect behind many physiological and psychological problems, not only in individuals but also within many families and societies. It can also result in drunk driving accidents, which claim thousands of lives in the US every year. One simply cannot become an alcoholic if they do not drink. It would be beneficial to have people re-think their stance about this real toxin to fight against alcohol abuse and dependence.

Tahan is a student at the College of Sciences, University of Iowa.

References

1) https://ncadd.org/for-the-media/alcohol-a-drug-information

2) Lacshenmeier DW, Przybylski MC, Rehm J. Comparative risk assessment of carcinogens in alcoholic beverages using the margin of exposure approach. Int J Cancer. 2012; 131(6):E995-1003.

3) Haas SL1, Ye W, Löhr JM. Alcohol consumption and digestive tract cancer. Curr Opin Clin Nutr Metab Care. 2012;15(5):457-67.

4) Homann N, Kärkkäinen P, Koivisto T, Nosova T, Jokelainen K, Salaspuro M. Effects of acetaldehyde on cell regeneration and differentiation of the upper gastrointestinal tract mucosa. J Natl Cancer Inst. 1997 Nov 19; 89(22):1692-7.

5) Bagnardi V, Rota M, Botteri E, Tramacere I, Islami F, Fedirko V, Scotti L, Jenab M, Turati F, Pasquali E, Pelucchi C, Bellocco R, Negri E, Corrao G, Rehm J, Boffetta P, La Vecchia C. Light alcohol drinking and cancer: a meta-analysis. Ann Oncol. 2013; 24(2):301-8.

6) http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/824237

7) Holman DM, Grossman M, Henley SJ, Peipins LA, Tison L, White MC. Opportunities for cancer prevention during midlife: highlights from a meeting of experts. Am J Prev Med. 2014; 46(3 Suppl 1):S73-80.

8) Pericleous M1, Mandair D, Caplin ME. Diet and supplements and their impact on colorectal cancer. J Gastrointest Oncol. 2013; 4(4):409-23.

A sugar is a monosaccharide if it is made up of a single sugar molecule; it is disaccharide if it is built by two sugar molecules; and a polysaccharide if it is composed with multiple sugar molecules.

Sugars that we ingest are broken, in the digestive system, into monosaccharides of glucose, fructose, and galactose. Almost all of the absorbed monosaccharides are first converted into glucose in the liver. This conversion is a very important task of the liver: 80% of the sugars passing into the blood are glucose. As a result, very limited amounts of fructose and galactose are present in the blood. Therefore, when blood sugar is mentioned, normally glucose is taken into consideration and the fructose and galactose levels in the blood are ignored. Glucose, which is also called grape sugar, is most abundantly found in grapes, while fructose is called fruit sugar, as it is plentiful in fruits, and galactose is named milk sugar after its dense presence in milk. The most important characteristic of fructose is that it is sweeter compared to other simple sugars.

Insulin is secreted from the pancreas in order to lower elevated blood glucose levels after digestion. Insulin functions in the transport of glucose from the blood into cells to provide necessary energy, therefore reducing blood sugar levels; furthermore, it also plays a role in the storage of excess glucose as glycogen, which is found primarily in the liver. Once glycogen storage limits are reached in the liver and muscles, glucose is then stored as fat. Fat tissue acts as sustenance during long fasting periods.

Differences between fructose, glucose, and galactose

Glucose and galactose are absorbed actively, depending on salt. They cannot be absorbed without salt while passing through the intestines. Salt is necessary for the absorption of glucose which is present in the starches of potatoes and other foods. Thus, when potato is consumed with salt, the transport of glucose into the blood is facilitated.

However, salt is not necessary in the case of fructose absorption. The intestinal absorption of fructose contained in fruit is delayed by fruit fibers, since these fibers prevent or balance the transport of fructose into the bloodstream. However, when fructose is ingested as a fruit juice, it is absorbed and joins the bloodstream much faster because of the lower fiber content.

A person feels full after a meal when neurons in the satiety center of the hypothalamus are stimulated by elevated blood glucose. Then, hunger center neurons are repressed, eliminating the feeling of hunger. Therefore, a person reduces their food intake during a meal as their blood glucose levels increase. Increased levels of amino acids and fatty acids in the blood also suppress hunger and stimulate fullness after meal. However, one important point is that fructose does not stimulate fullness in the brain. Therefore, if the blood fructose levels are elevated instead of glucose, a person cannot generate a sensation of fullness sensation. As a result, a person desires to intake more food during consumption of fructose. It is only possible for fructose to generate fullness after it has been converted into glucose by liver.

How to consume fruits?

We should prefer direct consumption of fruits instead of drinking natural or industrial fruit juices because of the high fructose content of fruits. The Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, consumed fruits before meals, the wisdom of which we learn only today. Fruits should be consumed at least an hour before or two hours after a meal, for sufficient time should be given for the fructose of an ingested fruit to be absorbed by the intestines and converted to glucose by the liver. Such practices will result in a reduced appetite and food intake. If fruit is consumed after a meal, a delay occurs in the conversion of fructose into glucose since the liver will be occupied by other biochemical processes, along with a full storage of nutrients; this will increase blood fructose levels and fail to reduce appetite. Fatty liver occurs as a consequence of high fat content of the blood. Arteriosclerosis and cirrhosis of the liver may be seen in people with a habit of excessive post-meal fruit consumption.

In a research carried out on laboratory animals, it was found that glucose induces fullness in the hypothalamus and suppresses food intake, whereas fructose was found to repress this effect of glucose, stimulating food intake.¹ Insulin reduces the harms of accumulating sugar in the blood by increasing lipid synthesis. Insulin also takes place in leptin secretion from adipose (fatty) tissue. Leptin is important in the prevention of obesity; therefore, insulin helps in weight loss, too. The leptin hormone causes reduced food intake by stimulating nerve cells in certain parts of the hypothalamus.² Fructose does not cause any leptin secretion because it does not stimulate an insulin release; therefore, it is not effective in generating a sense of fullness.

Ghrelin is a hormone secreted into blood by stomach cells during hunger. This hormone, which produces stomach acids, is enacted through the hypothalamus. It induces hunger, and therefore increases appetite. Insulin secretion increases along with the blood glucose levels during satiety. This eventually causes the increase of the leptin hormone, which also leads to a decrease in ghrelin secretion. As a result, fructose gets absorbed more than glucose in the intestines. Elevated fructose in the blood leads to insufficient or reduced insulin secretion. In this case, a person continues eating.

Fructose and diseases

Free circulation of lipids in the blood damages arteries and veins. For this reason, lipids are transported in “molecular vehicles” that are called as high, low, and very low density lipoproteins (HDL, LDL and VLDL). Neutral lipids (triglycerides) that are present on VLDL (very low density) vehicles are broken down with an enzyme. These lipids are then unloaded from the vehicles by cellular uptake and stored as fats. This transfer of lipids into adipose (fatty) tissue is enhanced via the insulin hormone. In the case of fructose intake, without its insulin secretion effect, lipids accumulate in the blood and liver and eventually prepare ground for liver damage and arteriosclerosis.As the result of a fructose based diet in laboratory animals, it was discovered that lipid production shifted from adipose tissue into the liver, therefore elevating the risk of high blood and liver fat levels.

There are two reasons for this shift. The first one is that fructose acts on the fat producing enzymes of the liver whereas it does not act likewise in adipose tissue.

Secondly, fructose plays an inhibitory role in the conversion of glucose into lipids in adipose tissue. Also, fructose consumption in humans has been linked to elevated blood fat levels.

Overconsumption of fructose causes increased liver fat synthesis. Phosphofructokinase is the limiting enzyme regarding the breakdown of glucose in the liver. This enzyme is regulated by citrates and ATP produced by glucose catabolism and the Krebs cycle, limiting glucose breakdown. However, there is no such limitation in fructose breakdown. Through fructose catabolism, glucose, glycogen, pyruvate, lactate, glycerol and the acyl part of acylglycerol are synthesized. This synthesis can not be limited. As a result of this excessive output and high amounts of triglycerides, VLDL is produced.³ It has been found that persons who consume two or more boxes of fructose sweetened beverages every day carry a 35% higher risk of heart disease.⁴

This isn’t the only disease associated with fructose. In some studies on laboratory animals, it has been reported that a high fructose diet is associated with hypertension.⁵ A lot of research exists suggesting that excessive fructose consumption leads to insulin resistance in both the liver and peripheral tissues, which can often cause diabetes.⁶ In a recent study, it was claimed that excessive fructose intake poses risks for renal diseases leading to glomerular hypertension, renal damage, and inflammation and damage to renal tubules and tissues.⁷

In a study conducted on 21,483 Americans who were older than two years, daily consumption of 37 gr. of fructose (8% of total calorie need) was found to be elevated to 54.7 grams (10.2% of total calorie need) gradually between the years of 1988-1994, mostly consumed by younger people. Increased use of fructose syrup was linked to obesity during the last 35 years.⁸ Furthermore, in a study carried on 1,749 male and female children and teenagers, a positive relation was found between body mass index (BMI) and excessive consumption of carbonated beverages containing high fructose concentrations.⁹ There many studies that support this report.¹⁰ Excessive fructose consumption is known to cause “metabolic syndrome” in which many diseases like obesity, arteriosclerosis, and diabetes emerge together.

Are fruit juices harmful?

Fructose syrup is being used at increasing rates in the food industry. According to the annual report of US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the year 2000, fructose syrups are sugar solutions containing approximately more than 50 % fructose. It is often synthesized by a conversion of corn starch into glucose by glucose isomerase.¹¹ There is also a third syrup type containing 90% fructose, however this has limited uses.

The sweetness of fructose syrup is similar to that of table sugar. It prevents the dehydration of food with its hydrophilic character. It is mostly used in aromatic foods, especially carbonated beverages and fruit juices. It prevents the proliferation of microbes with its high osmotic pressure property and makes food more resistant against them. Syrups containing 42 to 55% of fructose are used in baked goods, cereal products, dairy products, processed foods, both carbonated and regular beverages, ice creams, and frozen desserts. High fructose syrups are used in foods to decrease water activity and prevent spoilage.

Fructose syrups have a very low ash level due to application of intense purification processes during production and product color is water-white. Therefore colors of fructose used industrial foods are white as well. Fructose syrups have a lower viscosity and density compared to glucose syrups and therefore it is runny like water and not as sticky.

How to consume sugars after a meal?

Especially after a fatty meal, our body seeks sugar. The reason behind this is the requirement of sugar for the storage of lipids into fat tissue. However, this sugar should absolutely be glucose instead of fructose. Therefore, some amount of sugar can be consumed to facilitate the removal of lipids from blood after meals. This is recommended to lower blood lipid levels. However, this should not be done with fruits but with natural sugars like grape molasses. A baklava or a dessert made with industrial sugars (fructose) will not be beneficial but harmful.

In conclusion, the consumption of corn-derived fructose syrup is gradually increasing in recent years. Fructose syrup is used both in various carbonated or regular soft beverages, and in desserts. The reason for our fructose syrup preference is that it helps preserve foods longer and it leads to food addiction because it enhances appetite due to its strong sweetness. Fructose syrup is synthesized by the conversion of natural glucose in corn into fructose by isomerase enzymes. In this sense, today’s increased consumption of fructose is altering the existing sugar balance of natural food items. Overconsumption of fructose can pave the way to obesity, metabolic syndrome, arteriosclerosis, diabetes, hypertension, and arteriosclerotic heart and kidney diseases.

Arifagaoglu is a professor of medicine in Ankara, Turkey.

References

1. Wolfgang MJ, Cha SH, Sidhaye A. et al. Regulation of hypothalamic malonyl-CoA by central glucose and leptin. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 2007; 104: 19285-19290.
2. Guyton AC, Hall JE. “Dietary Balances; Regulation of Feeding; Obesity and Starvation; Vitemans and Minerals.” Textbook of Medical Physiology, Saunders, 2010, 843.
3. Rutledge A, Adeli K. Fructose and the metabolic syndrome: pathophysiology and molecular mechanisms. Nutr Rev. 2007; 65: 13–23.
4. Fung TT, Malik V, Rexrode KM, Manson JE, Willett WC, Hu FB. Sweetened beverage consumption and risk of coronary heart disease in women. Am J Clin Nutr. 2009;89:1037–42.
5. Barone BB, Wang NY, Bacher AC, Stewart KJ. Decreased exercise blood pressure in older adults after exercise training: contributions of increased fitness and decreased fatness. Br J Sports Med. 2009;43:52–6.
6. Blakely SR, Hallfrisch J, Reiser S, Prather ES. Long-term effects of moderate fructose feeding on glucose tolerance parameters in rats. J Nutr. 1981;111:307–314.
7. Johnson RJ, Sanchez-Lozada LG, Nakagawa T. The effect of fructose on renal biology and disease. J Am Soc Nephrol. 2010; 21(12): 2036-9.
8. Bray G. Fructose: should we worry? Int J Obes 2008;32: S127-131.
9. Forshee RA, Storey ML. Total beverage consumption and beverage choices among children and adolescents. Int J Food Sci Nutr. 2003; 54: 297–307.
10. Forshee RA, Anderson PA, Storey ML. The role of beverage consumption, physical activity, sedentary behavior, and demographics on body mass index of adolescents. Int J Food Sci Nutr. 2004; 55: 463-478.
11. Melanson KJ, Angelopoulos TJ, Nguyen V, Zukley L, Lowndes J, Rippe JM. High-fructose corn syrup, energy intake, and appetite regulation. Am J Clin Nutr. 2008; 88(6):1738S-1744S.

The phosphate and nitrogen compounds found in the waste material that are released into the environment go through some biological processes and are transformed into nourishing salts for the phytoplankton. When there is an increase in temperature, these salts may cause some of the phytoplankton to grow and reproduce excessively. The toxic materials released by some, and the use of excessive oxygen, are harmful to other organisms.

Another example of pollution is related with algae. When the number of microbial plants called algae reaches one million per cubic decimeter (1 million/dm3) of water, the consumption of oxygen required in order to mineralize, and break-down the organic materials found in the water increases, and therefore a compound of toxins which pollute the water, such as hydrogen sulfide (H2S), are released. This pollution can cause the death of fish and other organisms which live in the water. As a result of the reduction in water quality, an increase in the type of algae called cyanobacteria occurs and the biotoxins that they produce threatens human health.

More than forty types of algae produce various toxins. Some of these toxins damage the human liver, some attack the nervous system (particularly the brain), some can cause allergic skin reactions, and some can even induce cancer. The release of domestic, industrial, and agricultural waste and the high percentage of nutrients (such as nitrogen and phosphor compounds) into the aquatic ecosystem can cause an excessive increase of algae in the waters. This algal bloom in fresh water is referred to as eutrophication. In oceans, it is referred to as red tide because the water appears to be a reddish color. Both present a significant environmental problem.

In low doses humans are exposed to these toxins by the consumption of drinking water. In Brazil in 1988, almost 2000 people developed gastroenteritis over a forty day period due to the consumption of drinking water contaminated by these toxins, and eighty-eight of them died. In South Australia, as early as 1878, many sheep, horses, dogs and other animals died as a result of drinking water from Lake Alexandrina, which was covered by scum caused by an aglal bloom called Nodularia spumigena.

Mussels, a delicacy eaten and enjoyed by many, accumulate large amounts of toxins because they feed on phytoplankton. One study found that in fresh water mussels (Mytilus galloprovincialis) that fed on cyanobacteria, almost 10.7 g toxins per gram of bodyweight was accumulated. This is also the case in marine mussels. It has been determined that these toxins in gradually increased concentrations are passed onto organisms higher on the food chain by consumption. Accordingly, we should always consider the potential risk factors before consuming shellfish.

Biotoxins are released into the water after being broken down by algae. Thus, when an algal bloom reaches high levels, there is an increase in the density of toxins in the water. As these toxins dissolve in the water, purifying the contaminated water requires not only expensive, but also advanced technology methods. Unfortunately, it is impossible to remove this waste in many of the existing refining plants. The toxin concentration in drinking and utility water should be reduced in regions where drinking water is obtained from lakes by mixing it with uncontaminated water, particularly during the spring when the algal bloom occurs. Thus, reducing the amount of biotoxins in the water to a level that will cause minimal harm to aquatic organisms should help to reduce the risks to humans.

Many types of waste released into the environment cause damage, which adversely affect humans. Polluting the environment may be easy, but purifying the environment of this pollution is a very difficult task. Indeed, humans were not created to act irresponsibly and destroy the universe in which they are mere guests. On the contrary, the human is a delicate guest with sublime duties. Protecting the natural resources provided for our needs and utilizing these resources in the most productive manner, without disturbing the balance of nature, is a duty of every human on earth.

References

• Pouria S. de Andrade A. 1988. “Fatal microcystin intoxication in haemodialysis unit in Caruaru, Brazil.” Lancet 352:21-26.
• Carmichael W.W., Azevedo S.M.F.O. 2001. “Human fatalities from cyanobacteria: Chemical and biological evidence for cyanotoxins.” Environ. Health Perspect 109: 663-668.
• Codd G.A., Bell S.G., Kaya K., Ward C.J., Beattie K.A., Metcalf J.S. 1999. “Cyanobacterial toxins, exposure routes and human health.” Eur. J. Phycol. 34:405-415.

Only 0.15 % of the energy that reaches the earth is used by the plants and the algae as a source of energy for photosynthesis. The energy that is stored in the form of chemical energy within the photosynthetic plants establishes the source of energy for the food that is consumed by the creation. The past creation, as a result of the physical-chemical processes, was fossilized and solar power has been stored in the form of fossil fuels (oil, coal, natural gas).

Energy consumption and the environment

Energy consumption is viable for every form of work; the waste is what remains in the environment. This waste does not pose a problem as long as they do not damage the sensitive ecologic balance. However, rapid industrialization and urbanization, which lead to excessive amounts of energy consumption, result in environmental problems. Since industrialization-urbanization is directly related to energy consumption – particularly with fossil fuels – industrialized countries are more vulnerable to experiencing environmental problems. In today’s world, it is climatic change – a product of global warming – among these problems that is of the greatest global importance.

The increase in the proportion of carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas, in the atmosphere is the main factor for global warming. This increase is directly related to the consumption of fossil fuels. The rays of the sun, which are reflected from the earth, are trapped by carbon dioxide gases (chlorofluorocarbon, nitrous oxide and other greenhouse gases, such as water vapor) in the atmosphere, and they can not return to space. This, in turn leads to the atmosphere heating up (the greenhouse effect), eventually leading to an increase in heat throughout the world.

The main reason for the increase of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is the consumption of fossil fuels (77%) and the decrease in the number of forests (23%). Coal gas is normally the last product of the anaerobic processes in nature. In recent years human intervention played the main role in this abnormal increase in gases. Playing an important part in this process is the expansion in rice fields (38%) in order to feed the increasing population, natural gas extraction and its transfer (16%), an increase in the number of cattle (14%), coal mining (12%), and the oxidation of produced biomass (6%). Chlorofluorocarbon is included in industrial products. As for the nitrous oxides, they are the by-products of reactions in the nitrogen cycle in nature. In recent years, as a result of the increase in the use of the nitrogenous manures (85%), forest fires and other fires (11%), and the oxidation of the produced biomass (7%) there has been a rise in nitrous oxide. Consequently, the rapid increase in greenhouse gases in the last years has lead to a 0.5°C increase in the average heat of the earth.

If the greenhouse gases continue to be accumulated at this speed, then by 2100 the average heat of the earth will record an increase of 2–4°C compared to the period before industrialization. Eventually, there will be a greater melting of the glaciers at the poles, which will lead to 0.5–1.5 % increase in sea level. Thus, residential areas by the seaside, agricultural areas, wetlands and industrialized areas will face the danger of being flooded. Moreover, the risks of climatic changes and desertification will become much more severe.

Some countries are investigating how to calculate the probable effects of a decline in water, food and energy resources and what precautions need to be taken accordingly as a result of global warming. In this sense, the problem was clearly indicated during the summit meetings in Vienna (1985), Rio (1982), and Kyoto (1997), however, they have not been sufficient to provide a solution.

Another important problem arising from the overuse of fossil fuels is the damage to the environment caused by air pollution and acid rain. During the consumption of fossil fuels, CO2, NOx, and SOx are emitted into the atmosphere and these, combining with water vapor, lead to the formation of carbonic acid (H2CO3), nitric acid (HNO3) and sulfuric acid (H2SO4). While normally the pH of rain water is 5.5–6, with these acids it falls down to 3.5–4. This and the resultant dissolution of the metals in the water pose a threat for both the land and the aquatic ecosystems (e.g. a decline in fish species in many lakes) and impair the ecologic balance.

The impact of alternative and renewable energy on the environment

The negative impact of fossil fuels on the environment and the decline in their reserves has accelerated the search for new energy resources. Even though nuclear energy is not a renewable resource, today it has come to be regarded as an alternative energy resource all around the world. Hydrogen, too, is another growing alternative resource. Geothermal energy is also a renewable energy resource, yet it is mostly restricted to the region where it originates.

With current technology, it costs us more to use solar energy rather than to extract fossil fuels. Moreover, there is a great need for the development of new technology that is aimed at producing wind, hydroelectric, bio-energy, tidal and wave energy in the most efficient way at the lowest cost.

Defeated by their ambitions, human beings, particularly in the last century, have destroyed the world and the environment that has been entrusted to them. Since the global impact and the cost of this process only emerged recently, it was too late before human beings realized that they needed to shift from energy systems based on fossil fuels. All the worries and concerns that have surfaced today is not because we have finally realized that the earth has been entrusted to human beings, but simply because the future seems to be promising nothing but destruction. Thus, the real solution to the problems is not related to acting to find a solution to the problems, but rather in being in compliance with the measures of the actual Owner of the world and the universe and avoiding form all types of extremism.

References

• Spiro Thomas G. and Stigliani William M. 1996. Chemistry of the Environment, Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River, New Jersey, USA.
• Godish Thad. 1997. Air Quality, CRC Lewis Publishers, Boca Raton, New York.
• World Energy Outlook. 2004. International Energy Agency.

According to a study by researchers of the Human Footprint Project [1], humans have influenced 83% of the earth’s surface. The study is based on four factors: population, travel routes, land use, and lights. One of the findings of the study shows that an average American is responsible for more carbon emissions in one year, than a person in Tanzania in a lifetime. This significant difference is certainly related to the average lifespan, income, culture, and climate. However, do any of us have the rights to disturb the environment more than others? Are we consuming something that doesn’t belong to us, and leaving an unsustainable environment for future generations? To answer these questions, it is imperative that we understand and acknowledge exactly what we have inherited, what we are responsible for, and what we will leave to future generations.

Our influence on the earth and environment in a general sense is not limited to the consumption of goods. One of the most influential yet less-visible traces is the footprint we leave in the digital environment. There are active or passive traces left in a digital environment by personal activity. An active trace is left when personal information is released by a person himself, whereas a passive trace (digital shadow) is left when personal data is collected during personal activity. These traces, also known as digital footprints, can spread very quickly and may reach to millions in a very short time. One can leave digital traces by simply visiting a website, sending a blog post, or posting a photo or message to a friend’s website.

Our digital traces affect the environment in many ways. Every trace takes our time to generate it and for others to read it. It consumes storage and network resources on the server that increase the costs, power usage, and eventually our carbon footprint, or the total greenhouse gas emissions. We need to seek a balance in our use of digital media in order to utilize the benefits efficiently and to minimize our consumption of time and other resources.

Have you ever wondered “how often a person leaves digital traces behind every day?” or “how much of our privacy are we sharing with others?” A recent study reveals some figures about the size of the digital universe as 281 billion gigabytes (GB) for 2008 and 1.8 billion terabytes for 2011 [2]. The digital trace generated by the average person on a daily basis was about 45 GB in 2008. This includes private information such as emails, photos, VOIP calls, and instant messages.

How about passive digital traces we leave behind by credit card purchases, bank accounts, phone records, web searches, general backup data, medical and hospital records, surveillance cameras, and so on? There are more passive traces collected than our active digital traces, which provide more personal information.

As of 2006, there were over 1 billion Visa credit cards worldwide and counting [3]. Credit cards give a lot of private information about a person: stores we prefer, movies we watch, places we travel, books we read, prescriptions we take, rent and utility fees we pay; mainly our lifestyle is hidden in our credit card statements. It might contain a lot of details we want to keep private. We can easily learn a lot about our social life just by analyzing one of our credit card statements.

Web searches provide more insightful information about a person. 113 billion web searches were conducted in July 2009, a 41 percent increase compared to 2008 [4]. Besides all the information we leave with our credit card, web searches may show things we have not actually done. They contain information about our future plans, such as travel, job search, health related issues, meetings, and education. Websites can provide smarter search results and personalized advertisements according to our search habits. Search engines even know how fast we type or process information, our typos, languages we speak, how smart we search, and even our physical location from the IP address.

Today many cars have GPS (Global Positioning System) capabilities and smart phones have GPS sensors. GPS devices can show our exact location anywhere in the world, provide turn-by-turn instructions from one location to another, provide a list of nearby stores, and warn us about traffic problems. A recent market research [5] estimates that the mobile location technology market that crosses the US will be $75 billion by 2013 with growing usage of GPS capabilities in automobiles and consumer electronics. Beside all the benefits, GPS devices leave an important digital trace behind, our exact location, which can be stored for later use or tracked by third parties.

Even if a person doesn’t have a GPS sensor with him, there are cameras all around the city that can help capture one’s location. We can see cameras inside and outside of the banks, stores, traffic lights, and even closed-circuit TV (CCTV) surveillance cameras in some cities. The total number of CCTV cameras in England is 4.2 million, or one for every 14 people according to an estimate. According to Scotland Yard, one crime per 1,000 CCTV cameras is solved in a year [6].

The number of smart phones increased 13.9 percent worldwide, compared to 2007, and reached 139 million in 2008 [7]. Many smart phones have real-time video streaming capabilities and are widely used. Users upload hundreds of thousands of videos per day to YouTube about themselves or people around them. Considering that there are thousands of video sharing websites like YouTube, sharing videos on these websites lies at the center of important privacy concerns. There are websites to share videos, photos, music, location, blog posts, and personal updates. With the rise of the micro-blogging trend, we can see real-time updates about a person on websites like Twitter. This allows us to track every minute of a person’s life.

Social networking is a new way of communication. Many websites provide tools to build online communities of people, who want to share and learn interests and activities of others. We can build our friend list and share photos, videos, and updates about our life. According to Nielsen Online’s report on Internet usage in June 2009 [8], users spent an average of 4 hours and 39 minutes during June on one of the most famous social networking sites, Facebook, which has 87 million visitors. Normally these websites provide privacy settings to limit who can access our friend list, photos, or other information. Since most of the people don’t refuse friend requests, it is very easy to be added as a friend and get access to all the private information of people we do not even know. Once we get accepted by a person as a friend, it gets easier to be accepted as friend by his/her friends, since we have mutual friends. These connections increase our friend list exponentially.

I had known about this process for some time, so I wanted to confirm it myself by setting up an account with fake information and identity on Facebook in 2008. I selected a college and input random personal information to my profile. I visited some group pages on Facebook and joined them. Then Facebook started to offer possible friend lists that have common interests with me. I started to make random friend requests to many users on these lists. In one day, I had around a hundred friends in my list that I don’t know personally. As a friend on their list, I have access to all information they share with others. Most of the users are using default settings and are not aware of privacy issues. Even if we are careful about all these settings and our privacy, our information is accessible by website managers. Digital traces left by users are valuable commercial assets for companies, and most of them share or sell this information to third party companies which provide online advertisements, products, and services.

There is a positive side of these digital traces. Websites provide better recommendation of products and services, targeted advertisements, smarter search results, and personal news. Entertainment businesses can provide appropriate suggestions by using location services. However, erasing our digital traces is difficult or even impossible in some cases. To protect our privacy and identity, it is essential that we are aware of places our personal information is stored. It is the responsibility of websites to protect user’s data. However, it will be a good start to be aware as users of our traces on the digital universe and to share personal information carefully.

With various effects on our natural and social environment, digital traces are one of the most influential and yet less known by-products of consumption. It is an important responsibility for us to decide how we affect our environment, how we spend our time, and what we are going to leave to future generations. With all the unique values given to humans, we need to learn to make meaningful contributions and carry more responsibility for our actions, especially in the digital world where boundaries are unlimited.

Acknowledgment: This article is produced either in part or a whole at MERGEOUS [9], an online article and project development service for authors and publishers dedicated to the advancement of technologies in the merging realm of science and religion.

Halil I. Demir is an internet entrepreneur and freelance writer.

References

1. Wildlife Conservation Society [http://www.wcs.org/humanfootprint]
2. EMC Report, “The Diverse and Exploding Digital Universe,” 2008.
3. Visa USA Internal Statistics, Q4 2006.
4. ComScore Press Release, August 31, 2009.
5. RNCOS Market Research Report, “World GPS Market Forecast to 2013,” April 2009.
6. Telegraph, 24 Aug 2009.
7. Gartner Press Release, Worldwide Smartphone Sales, Mart 2009.
8. Nielsen Online’s Report, June 2009.
9. Mergeous [http://www.mergeous.com]

Enviromnental damage ramains a growing concern. Despite rigorous energy efficiency programs and research and development (R&D) efforts on cleaner energy technologies in most developed countries, no developing country views these as priorities. And they have a case: Developed countries, which enjoyed high economic growth for decades by ignoring the environmental consequences, are hindering developing countries’ economic growth. On the other hand, representatives from developed countries say that we are all in the same boat and will sink together if developing countries do not pay attention to environmental consequences.

In December 1997, world leaders gathered in Kyoto to address the problem of global warming and to decide which countries should cut emissions and to what extent. Not surprisingly, developing countries objected to any restriction that might limit their economic growth. Such discussions will become more intense in the aftermath of the Kyoto Protocol.

This article will not address the issue of environmental reparations. Rather, it will discuss the energy markets’ current situation and short-term future trends.

Basic Properties of the Energy Systems

Present-day energy systems have several basic characteristics. All policy makers dealing with energy systems should know these basics by heart.

First, energy systems develop slowly because they require significant capital and infrastructure that can be replaced only gradually. There are two important consequences resulting from this fact:

•Intense capital requirements are a strong barrier to average-sized firms. Thus, energy systems are seldom run by private enterprises. In most countries they are constructed and run by the state, and a separate government body deals with energy issues. Energy systems have been dominated by heavy regulations even in most market-oriented economies. The recent trend of deregulation is an exception rather than the norm.

•Even if a state realizes that current energy systems can be improved significantly (e.g., switching to other fuel types or deregulating the market), making changes to a huge, functioning infrastructure is a slow and painful process. It is relatively easy to make changes during the initial stages of an energy system. But as time passes, this becomes more difficult.

As in most cases, good planning is essential. A state must be very careful when building its energy systems, and should pay attention to underlying energy market trends. Important lessons can be learned from the long history of mistakes committed by developing countries. And if a developing country fails to keep up with recent trends, it may find itself trapped by its own hands in an inherently inefficient system for decades.

Second, energy systems are heavily reliant on fossil fuels. Historically, coal has been a prominent energy resource in most countries. Despite its widely acknowledged negative impact on human health and the environment, it still dominates energy systems in such developing countries as India and China. In most countries, oil is the primary energy source.

Oil was one of the most influential key factors of the twentieth century. Just by looking at the traffic on our teeming highways or the modern political landscape, we can understand how profoundly oil has changed the way we live and handle international politics. In the light of the oil crises of 1973 and 1980, the reverse-shock of 1986, and another crisis during the Gulf War of 1990, the need to diversify away from oil becomes abundantly clear.

Environmental concerns also support the case against oil. This is how natural gas, a slightly cleaner fossil fuel, gradually entered the picture. Given the current energy systems’ dependence on these fossil fuels and the fact that energy systems change slowly, oil, coal and natural gas will continue to be dominant for years.

Third, the driving force behind the dynamic of switching from one fuel type to another is economics. Fuel types with smaller unit costs survive in the long run. Oil, for example, now has the lowest unit cost (cost per unit of energy) in most regions of the world.1

Given this, cleaner fuel (e.g., solar energy) still have a long way to go before becoming economically viable. Why would you pay $5 for what you can get for $3? Countries that use non-oil energy resources do this for a number of reasons, such as they do not have natural resources and so transporting oil ends up costing more, or they have abundant natural energy resources of other types. But, in general, economics is the most important issue here.

Introducing New Fuels

What trajectory does the unit cost follow when a new fuel is introduced? Consider photovoltaic (PV) cells. The term photovoltaic refers to a family of technologies that convert light directly into electricity. PV technology is an appealing alternative-it is a renewable, environmentally benign, and domestically secure energy source. It is modular and can be scaled up to meet demand.2 However, unit cost is currently high compared to fossil fuels.

A new technology’s unit cost is believed to follow a learning (or experience) curve as a function of installed capacity. As shown in Figure 1, technologies may experience declining costs due to their increasing adoption by society. This decline may be attributed to several factors:

• Technology innovation and manufacturing improvements: Costs may decline due to a better understanding of the underlying science, progress in related fields, or via learning by doing as well as learning by using.

• Economies of scale: Unit cost is a function of total production. Products produced in large quantities have lower unit costs. Most new fuel types have high unit costs, and demand is too low to encourage large-scale production. It almost seems paradoxical. But there are ways to break this cycle. Regulations encouraging usage of new fuel types may be enforced, consumers who have priorities other than cost may be targeted to expand the current market, or the cost may drop low enough for the technology to become attractive even for low production levels.

In achieving economies of scale, consumer demand should he considered. A major concern for the end-use consumer is convenience. The value of oil would be much lower if gas stations were not located all over the country. The same issue applies to fuel cells and electric cars. They will not be as convenient as conventional cars until the proper infrastructure exists.

Since 1960s, cooperative investments by manufacturers and governments have resulted in the accumulation of experience within the solar industry and the subsequent cost reduction of PV systems. Significant cost reductions have occurred in both the PV modules that house the solar cells, and the ancillary components (known as balance-of-system). Between 1968 and 1998, the global cumulative installed capacity of PV modules doubled more than thirteen times, from 95 kW to 950 MW, while costs ($/Wp) were reduced by an average of 20.2% for each doubling.4

Trends for Different Fuel Types

After this overview of energy systems, lets look at the trends for specific fuel types. Figure 2 is taken from International Energy Outlook 2000 (IEO2000), an annual report published by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA).5 It displays projections of energy usage by fuel type up to 2020. The highlights following the figure are summarized from the reports contents.

Coal: Carbon dioxide is a very effective greenhouse gas and contributes significantly to global warming. Since coal is the most carbon-intensive fuel, global climate change debates focus on reducing its use. Coal use also has significant public health consequences, due to particulate matter emissions. Historically, coal has been a major source of energy. Although it has lost market share to petroleum products, natural gas, and nuclear power in the last decades, it remains a key source of energy, especially for generating electricity. In the IEO2000 reference case, coals share of total energy consumption falls only slightly, from 24 percent in 1997 to 22 percent in 2020 (Figure 3). Its historical share is nearly maintained, because large increases in energy use are projected for developing Asian countries, where coal continues to dominate many national fuel markets. China and India are projected to account for 97 percent of the worlds total increase in coal use.

Oil: Oil use will grow in absolute terms, but even optimistic oil supply scenarios predict that its share in the fuel mix will decline gradually. Despite efforts to reduce reliance on Middle Eastern oil, as well as advances in technical capability, new oil reserves are not compensating for depleted ones. The experts estimates of vast oil reserves in the Caspian and Tarim basins proved to be somewhat high, and the latest probes have been partially disappointing. According to EIA estimates, the share of the Persian Culf supplies is likely to increase in the coming years. Economic theory says that prices rise as supply declines. Oil prices have been quite volatile and can be expected to remain so in the future, principally as the result of unforeseen political and social circumstances. Without attempting to predict any crisis, the IEO2000 forecast shows a gradual rise in world oil prices. Oil currently provides a larger share of world energy consumption than any other energy source and is expected to remain in that position throughout the forecast period. Its share of total energy consumption declines slightly, however, from 39 percent in 1997 to 38 percent in 2020, as countries in many parts of the world switch to natural gas and other fuels, particularly for electricity generation. World oil consumption is projected to increase by 1.9 percent annually over projection period. Most of the growth in oil use is projected for the transportation sector, where few alternatives are currently economical.

Natural Gas: Natural gas remains the fastest growing component of global energy consumption. Over the IEO2000 forecast period, its use is projected to more than double in the reference case, reaching 167 trillion cubic feet. The natural gas share of total energy consumption increases from 22 percent in 1997 to 29 percent in 2020. It also accounts for the largest increment in electricity generation. Combined-cycle gas turbine power plants offer some of the highest commercially available plant efficiencies, and natural gas is environmentally attractive because it emits less sulfur dioxide, carbon dioxide, and particulate matter than either oil or coal.

World Energy Consumption Shares Type: 1970-2000

In the industrialized world, natural gas consumption has the largest projected increase among the major fuels, increasingly becoming the choice for new power generation because of its environmental and economic advantages. Its incremental use in developing countries is expected to supply both power generation and other uses, such as town gas and fuel for industry. Despite concerns about the extent of natural gas reserves worldwide, current proven reserves suffice for this markets steady development without a substantial price increase.

Nuclear Power: The prospects for nuclear power are uncertain, despite a projected growth rate of 2.5 percent per year in total electricty demand through 2020. In the IEO2000 reference case, global nuclear capacity is projected to increase to 368 gigawatts in 2010 and then gradually fall to 303 gigawatts in 2020. Aggressive plans to expand nuclear capacity, mainly in Asia, lead to a near-term increase. However, plant retirements in America and other countries exceed total new additions worldwide, and produce a decline later in the forecast. The International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis [IIASA] is one of the authorities on energy issues.

IIASA projections [which extend until 2100] hold a slightly pessimistic view of nuclear energy. Nuclear energy production has stagnated for several decades, and IIASA suggests that this will continue. Currently, nuclear energy is prominent in only a handful of countries. Not many nuclear plants are being built, and existing ones are being dismantled. With large up-front capital costs, plant safety, and recycling nuclear material after dismantling issues, this option is becoming less and less attractive. Public opposition, already strong in the US and Europe, is growing in Asia. Nuclear safety issues moved to the forefront in Asia in 1999 after several leaks at nuclear power plants in South Korea and China, and the serious accident in a reprocessing facility in Tokaimura, Japan. Such events are likely to raise concerns about Asias aggressive plans for nuclear capacity expansion. IIASA predicts that if a safer and cheaper new generatinn of nuclear plants is introduced, nuclear powers ultimate share in fuel mix will grow. Otherwise, it eventually will come to an end.

Renewables: The development of renewable resources is constrained in the IEO2000 reference case projections by expectations that fossil fuel prices will remain relatively low, and that, as a result, renewables will have a difficult time competing. Failing a strong global commitment to environmental programs, such as the limitation and reduction of greenhouse gases outlined in the Kyotu Protocol, it is difficult to foresee significant and widespread increases in renewable energy use. Modest growth in renewabte energy is projected to continue, maintaining an 8 percent share of total energy consumption. Nevertheless, in the long run, as other fossil fuel types become more expensive due to depletion and R&D efforts push the unit cost further down, new opportunities will emerge. Even conservative estimates predict that the worlds energy will rely considerably on renewables before 2100.7

Conclusion

In this article,we highlighted several basic characteristics of energy systems, and drew attention to some underlying trends for particular fuel types. Based on this information, we can say that:Energy systems are capital-intensive and hard to change once they have been built. Therefore, developing countries should track energy system trends closely and build their energy systems according to their future needs. The most important factor influencing the decision of which energy source to use is economics. Until a resources unit cost is competitive with others, it will not enjoy widespread acceptance and usage. Fossil fuels will dominate energy markets in the short run. The shares of coal and oil in the fuel mix will remain relatively constant until 2020, while the market for natural gas will expand rapidly. Nuclear power will survive only if a new generation of safer and cheaper reactors is introduced. Renewables will be the ultimate choice of the future. Currently, however, they cannot compete successfully on cost with conventional fuels.

Footnotes

1. Although the cost of extraction rises as the amount of oil remaining underground decreases, extraction technology also advances and pushes the cost down. Transporting oil from the field to the marketplace is added to the extraction (or purchasing) cost.
2. Christopher Harmon, Experience Curves of Photovoltaic Technology (March 2000). The entire report is available on IIASA web site: http: www.iiasa.ac.at/Publications/Documents lR-00-014.pdf
3. Netherlands Energy Research Foundation (ECN at Petten), “Endogenous Technological Change in Energy System Models.” Paper presented at the 1999 IIASA conference.
4. IIASA-WEC. 1998.
5. International Energy Outlook 2000 is available on the EIAs Web site: http: www.eia.doe.gov/oiaf/ieo/index.html.
6. N. Nakicenovic, A. Gruebler, and A. McDonald, Global Energy Perspectives (Cambridge. UK: 1998).
7. Experts differ over what exactly is included in this category. For practical purposes, renewables cover all energy sources except coal, oil, natural gas, and nuclear. Therefore this group includes, but is not limited to, hydroelectricity, wave, wind, biomass, and solar energy.

The extent of the problem

In the last two decades, there has been a tremendous increase in alcohol consumption in the world, an all-time high (WHO, 1980, pp7-13). The way to estimate the marked increase is probably to look at total or per capita consumption in different countries over a certain period of time (see Graphs 1, 2).

The WHO committee on alcohol-induced problems found that per capita consumption of alcoholic beverages has been increasing throughout most of the world in the last 20 years. Between 1960 and 1972, for example recorded world-wide production increased by 19% for wines, 68% for beer, and 61% for distilled spirits. Both industrialised and developing countries in various regions of the world showed that the annual consumption of alcoholic beverages, in terms of 100% ethanol (ethyl alcohol), was above 8 litres per capita in only two countries in 1950, but by 1976 this level was found in 22 countries (ibid.). A 1982 WHO report showed that by 1982 beer production had increased by 124% world-wide. In some countries in Asia, the increase was a horrifying 500%; in some African countries beer consumption increased by as much as 400%. Even remote villages, in many third world countries, were consuming alcoholic beverages while they lacked clean water and sewage disposal and other primary health amenities (Medicine Digest, 1982, p.S7).

In the UK, the per capita spending on alcohol increased by 76% over 1960-70. The adult population of the UK drank about twice as much alcohol in 1984 as it did in 1950. Spirit consumption increased by 135% while wine consumption increased by 250% (RCGP, l986).

The negative consequences of alcohol consumption are so great that it is impossible to list them. In 1979, members of the Executive Board at its 63rd session and delegates of numerous countries at the 32nd World Health Assembly confirmed that alcohol problems now rank among the world’s major public health concerns (resolution WHO 32.40; WHO, 1980); that in many parts of the world, they constitute a serious obstacle to socio-economic development and threaten to overwhelm the health services. A summary of the major losses due to alcohol consumption will be given here.

Socio-economic losses

Although the alcohol industry seems to benefit a few big international companies and provide jobs for many workers and even seems to increase state revenue from levying taxes on alcoholic beverages, the total socio-economic loss is so tremendous that these benefits become trivial. The deleterious effect on health, welfare and social consequences of alcohol consumption will more than tilt the balance towards the benefits of proscribing or at least limiting alcohol consumption.

The cost of alcohol abuse to a society is difficult to measure. In the USA, it was estimated that 30,000 million dollars were lost due to alcohol consumption in 1971 (Brunt, 1978). Table 3 gives some details. By 1979 these estimated costs were put at $43 billion dollars (WHO, 1980); and by 1986 at a staggering $120 billion dollars (Al-Sharq al-Awsat, 1986, Nov.11).

The UK spent 3 billion on alcohol in 1971; the figure increased to 11.4 billion in 1984 (RCGP, 1986), while France, in 1971, was spending annually an equivalent of $7 billion (Al-Sharq al-Awsat, 1980. July 1). West Germany in 1971 was spending 27.5 million DM on alcohol compared with 12.75 for smoking.

Alcohol features prominently in traffic accidents. WHO statistics suggest that it is involved in about 50% of all traffic accidents. Even in countries where alcohol and addictive drugs are prohibited, like Saudi Arabia, the Director of the Department of Alcohol and Drug Control claims that about 50% of long road accidents are due to alcohol and drug abuse (reported in personal conversation). In the USA, 25,000 deaths occur annually due to accidents caused by alcohol consumption. Another 15,000 deaths occur due to diseases caused by alcohol and another 15.000 deaths occur due to murder crimes and suicide committed under the influence of alcohol (Harris, 1971, pp.138-42).

The risk of accidents rises exponentially above 50 mg of alcohol percent, and at 200 mgs, the risk is a hundred times above that of the non-drinker (Brunt, 1978). It is estimated that 250,000 USA citizens die annually due to tobacco and alcohol consumption.

In crimes of violence, alcohol plays a prominent role. Nearly 70% of murders are committed under the influence of alcohol (ibid. ). WHO, after studying violent crimes in thirty countries including the USA and the UK, concluded that 86% of murders and 50% of rapes and other crimes of violence were committed under the influence of alcohol-reported in the Daily Mai l, June 26, 1980, which also quoted Lord Harris whose commission on the prison population in the UK reported that the majority of criminals were suffering from alcohol related problems.

Industrial losses are tremendous. In Scotland alone losses reached 100 million annually (SCA, 1977). In the USSR alcohol abuse is the most important cause of absenteeism and loss of production. (Gulf Times, 1983, Jan.12).

WHO (1980) cites the following consequences of alcohol abuse: absenteeism, illness, decreased production and quality of work, difficulties in work relationships, accidents and loss of trained personnel. Many countries, especially in the Third World, soffer badly from loss of management and trained staff due to alcohol abuse.

A lot of other social problems arise due to alcohol abuse. 74% of wife and child batterers are heavy drinkers. Incest, rape and other sexual crimes are usually committed under the influence of alcohol.

Divorce and separation are the ultimate result of indulgence in alcohol.

The price paid in human misery, poverty, broken homes and social degradation is beyond calculation.

Incidence of alcohol dependence

The term ‘alcohol dependence’ has replaced ‘alcoholism’ which is a denigratory unspecified term. Alcohol dependence is manifested by overt drinking behaviour, a continuation of drinking in a way not approved by one’s culture and in changed behavioural state. The dependent person’s control over his drinking becomes impaired, his craving for drink becomes relentless, and planning for drinking takes precedence over all other activities. Altered psychosomatic changes occur whereby the dependent person experiences the psychological and/or somatic signs of withdrawal during periods of abstinence. There is also increased tolerance whereby the effective dose of the intoxicant has to be increased in order to get the save pharmacological effect and satisfaction from the drug abused (Edwards et al.,1977, p.3; WHO, 1977, p.198).

It is estimated that at least one in ten of those who drink alcohol even occasionally will become alcohol dependent. In the USA the majority of the adult population drink. Some 100 million Americans drink alcoholic beverages at least occasionally (Miles, S., 1974, pp.10-14). The statistics show that practically every 17- or 18-year old will have experimented with at least one drink. As many as 50 to 85 percent of high school students drink at least occasionally. The average age at which youths begin to experiment is 13 to 14 (ibid.). In Scotland, 92% of boys and 85% of girls have experienced alcohol by age 14 (Jahoda & Crammond, 1972). In the age group 17-30 no less than 87% of men and 60% of women are regular drinkers (Dight, 1976).

Youngsters are more prone to heavy drinking when they are exposed to alcohol. In Scotland, 70% of boys and 61% of girls admitted to heavy drinking occasionally, while 40% of boys and 32% of girls (15-16 years) are regular heavy drinkers (Plant et al, 1980). 60% of Glasgow’s six-year-olds had tried alcohol (Jahoda & Crammond, 1972).

Increasing numbers of women are exposed to drinking. Heavy drinkers among women rose from 4% in 1972 to 11% in 1978 (Show, 1980). In the USA 93% of teenagers (12-17) have experienced alcohol; 1.2 million drink regularly (Strasburger, 1985).

In the USSR, the problem seems even worse. 90% of all cases of acute alcoholic intoxication being treated for the first time are under 15; one-third of them are under 10 (Al-Madina, 1984, Dec.13, quoting the Russian magazine Nash Supermenik ). 15% of the adult population are at present being treated for alcohol dependence.

There are hundreds of millions who suffer from alcohol abuse annually in the whole world. In the USA, it is estimated that 10 million are suffering from the deleterious effects of alcohol abuse (problem drinkers and alcohol dependents), with lens of millions being involved with alcohol dependent persons (Miles, 1974). In France and West Germany, there are 2.5 million alcohol dependents in the UK the figure is lower at 0.5 to 1 million, while those classed as ‘heavy’ drinkers (consuming more than 5I units weekly for males or 35 units for females), amounted to 3 million in England and Wales in 1981 (RCGP, 1986). In the USSR, its staggering figure of 25 million puts it at the top of the world as the first alcohol dependent country. In France, one-third of the electorate get some or all its income from the production and sale of alcoholic beverages (Badri, 1976, p.4l).

It is estimated that 40,000 deaths occur annually in the UK due to alcohol consumption. Though this figure is staggering, it is less than half those killed by smoking cigarettes (100,000). Heavy drinkers have a mortality rate over twice the normal population (RCGP, 1986).

WHO Technical Report on Alcohol, 1980, claims that in many countries the heavy drinkers and alcohol-dependents constitute 4-10 % of the whole population. The WHO Expert Committee on Drug Dependence concluded that in many parts of the world, problems associated with the use of alcohol far exceed those associated with non-medical use of less socially accepted dependence producing drugs such as those of amphetamine, cannabis and morphine types (WHO, 1980). The reason for this widespread alcohol dependence emerges from the fact that many cultures look upon alcohol drinking, at least in moderation, as normal behaviour. ‘Alcohol is such a permissible and trusted poison, so easy of access for those who wish to escape from their troubles that it is resorted to in excess by the maladjusted person,’ as Sir Aubrey Lewis said in Price’s Textbook of Medicine (Lewis, 1966, pp.1172-4).

Alcohol is completely forbidden by Islam. However, even in Muslim countries, alcohol dependence is becoming a problem that has to be tackled. In Khartoum province (Sudan), Dr. Al-Bager (1976) studied the incidence of alcohol consumption and alcohol dependence in 1975-76. He found the following important facts that: 1) females rarely drink alcohol; 2) most of those who drink alcohol started at the age of 16 or over; 3) the majority of alcohol drinkers do not drink at home as there is still strong refusal by the family; 4) the male adult population in Khartoum province in 1975 was 417,820-47% of them had tried intoxicating liquor at least once; 87% of those who drink are social drinkers while the remaining 13% are regular, daily drinkers who are starting to experience problems from their drink in habits; 5) divorce was high in those who drink compared with non-drinkers of alcohol, 20% and 4% respectively. 6) 22% of those who drink do so because of psychological problems while 9% do so because of problems at home; 7) 52% of all traffic accidents in 1975-76 were committed under the influence of alcohol; 8) the amount spent on alcoholic beverages (10 million Sudanese) was double the amount allocated to the Ministry of Health in 1975. In Bahrain, a small Gulf country, the consumption of alcohol is very high indeed. As much as 9 million kg of alcoholic beverages were consumed in 1981. The total annual cost was estimated at 3,195 million (Towajiri, 1985; Musaiger, 1985).

Medicine Digest (1982) summarised the 1982 WHO report on alcohol and its problems. Most Islamic countries had minor problems related to alcohol consumption:

Saudi Arabia, Iran, Kuwait, Qatar, Libya and North Yemen were all prohibiting alcohol in 1982. By 1984, Pakistan and Sudan followed suit while Egypt and Bahrain allowed alcohol in tourist places, both for indigenous persons and foreigners.

,Unfortunately, many Muslim governments have sought to spread alcohol consumption against the will of the majority of their people. In Egypt, Turkey, Tunisia, South Yemen, Indonesia, Iraq, Syria and many others, the governments not only encourage private enterprise of the brewing industry, but the governments themselves own outright or share ownership in the breweries and alcohol factories. They help spread alcohol consumption in their nations on the assumption that they will get more income and provide more jobs for the unemployed. The ill effects that ensue from this policy are well manifested by the staggering debt hills to the international banking system.

Though the vast majority of the people in Muslim countries abstain from alcohol despite incitement by governments, the elite, unfortunately, are entangled in all the problems of alcohol consumption. This is owed to the contradictory effects of Westernization of the elites who remain hypnotized by Western civilisation and try to promulgate its values to their own, different culture.

REFERENCES

• AL-BAGER, O.S. (1979) Zahirat Taati al-Khamr, Military Press, Khartoum, pp.34-8.
• BADRI, M. (1976) Islam and Alcoholism, American Trust Publications, Muslim Student’s Association of USA and Canada.
• BRUNT, P. (1978) ‘Alcoholism as a medico social problem’ in Vere, D.W. (ed) 1978, pp.124-35.
• DIGHT, S. (1976) Scottish Drinking Habits, OPCS, HMSO, London.
• EDWARDS G. (1977) ‘alcohol-related disabilities’ WHO, WHO Offset Pub.32.
• HARRIS, I. (1971) ‘Alcohol problem and alcoholism’ in Beeson, P.B .& McDermott, W. (eds) Cecil Loeb Textbook of Medicine, Saunders, Philadelphia, pp.138-42.
• JAHODA, G. & CRAMMOND, J. (1972) Children and Alcohol, OPCS, HMSO, London.
• LEWIS, A. (1966) ‘Psychological Medicine’ in Scott, R.B. (ed) (1966) Price’s Textbook of Medicine, 10 th edn, Oxford University Press.
• Medicine Digest (1982) 8 (12).
• MILES, S. (1974) Learning About Alcohol, American Assoc, for Health, Physical Education and Recreation, Washington D.C.
• MUSAIGER, A. (1985) Youngsters and Drugs in Arab Gulf Countries (in Arabic), Al Rabian, Kuwait.
• PLANT, M.A. et.al. (1980) ‘Self Reporting drinking habits and alcohol related consequences among cohort Scottish teenagers’, British Journal of Addiction, 77, pp.75-90.
• RCGB (1986a) ‘Alcohol: a balanced view’, Journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners, 24 pp.1-3.
• RCGB (1986b) ‘Alcohol: a balanced view’, Journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners, 24 pp.5-53.
• SHOW, S. (1980) ‘Causes of increasing drink problems amongst women’ in Women and Alcohol, Camberwell Council on Alcoholism, London, pp. 1-40.
• STRASBURGER, V. (1985) ‘Sex, drugs and rock ‘n roll: understanding teenager behaviour ‘, PaediatricA, 76 (4,2), pp. 659-63.
• TUWAIJIRI, A.M. (1985) ‘Ghadan sawfa yuqtaloon (Tomorrow they will be killed)’, Risalat al-Khalij , 16(5), pp. 9-29.
• VERE, D. W. (ed) (1978) Topics in Therapeutics, Royal College of Physicians, Pittman Medical, London.
• WHO (1977) Manual of the International Statistical Classification of Diseases, Injuries and Causes of Death, vol.1, Genev a.
• WHO (1980) Problems Related to Alcohol, WHO Technical Report Series No: 650, Geneva, pp. 7-13.

It is an aspect of the Divine Mercy that everyone of those actions which a practising Muslim is required to do in a particular way and with a particular intention combines a moral-spiritual value with a utilitarian value. For example, it has been objectively demonstrated that, if done properly and regularly, wudu contributes to having clean, healthy skin (see Fountain, 1, pp.33-6). Of course, that is not the point of doing wudu. The point of doing wudu is to get oneself in a state of readiness for worship–for the explicit occasions such as doing the prayer or reading the Qur’an, or, more generally, for initiating any action which the Muslim hopes may be acceptable as worship. The practical benefit of doing the prescribed acts in the prescribed manner is not what makes them acceptable or worthy as acts of worship. If a non-Muslim does the same actions, copying every detail with exact care, or if a Muslim does them but without the proper intention, only the practical benefits are to be hoped for: it is the intention that earns the moral reward. The practical benefit can then be understood as the additional (and not the essential) merit of the prescribed actions–a part of the rationality, the universality, the sheer ease of Islam.

It is in this general perspective that we can best grasp the benefits of slaughtering animals according to the manner prescribed to Muslims. The four conditions of it, after the condition that the animal be one lawful for Muslims to eat, are: 1) that the person doing the slaughtering is a Muslim of sound mind (not mad, not drunk, not legally a minor); 2) that the name of Allah is pronounced before any incision is made; 3) that the instrument used is extremely sharp; 4) that the incision is made in the neck just below the glottis, cutting the throat and oesophagus, the jugular vein and the carotid artery, but (and this is most important) without cutting the spinal cord or severing the head from the body. We should add that it is improper to interfere with the carcass (for example, to begin skinning or dismembering the animal) before convulsions have ceased and its life fully departed.

Plainly, the first and second conditions have to do with the intention, the state of mind, of the person doing the slaughtering. The subsequent conditions have to do with the practical details of carrying out the intention. Studied objectively (that is, without the prejudice of anti-Muslim sentiment), the practical details are found to be the most reliable way of producing wholesome meat without causing undue distress or pain to the animal.

The sharpness of the instrument guarantees the speed of the incision. The speed ensures that, just as when a man cuts himself shaving with a razor, the incision itself is painless (even if, much later, the wound may not be). The particular incision, the cutting of the major blood vessels in the neck, produces an immediate stunning effect: it causes the most massive possible haemorrhaging of blood which, by straightaway cutting the supply of blood to the brain, renders the animal unconscious. However, because the spinal cord is not (must not) be cut, the brain continues to send its electrical impulses to the heart, urgent messages demanding the supply of blood: that is why the animal convulses violently, pumping blood ever more vigorously and so speeding up the haemorrhaging process, until life leaves the body. Certainly, these violent convulsions (the result of rapid muscle contraction) look distressing, but in fact they are painless to the animal which, as we have noted, is unconscious during this process. The body’s own mechanism is thus used to rapidly drain the carcass of blood. Not until the draining of blood is finished is it permissible to proceed with skinning or dismembering the carcass. Why?Blood carries nutrients round the body to feed its tissue cells and carries away the waste product left after the nutrients have been extracted; after processing in the kidneys the blood is purified of these wastes and again circulated. The same blood also carries organisms which are responsible for disease but which in a healthy living body do not present as clinical symptoms. Separated from the body, these disease-carrying organisms are indeed harmful and it is for that reason (among others) that the consumption of blood is forbidden. Moreover, blood in a carcass is the principal breeding- ground for all kinds of bacteria. The failure to drain a carcass adequately renders it liable to rapid putrefaction, making the meat unfit for consumption. The convulsions of the slaughtered animal are the most efficient and (despite appearances) the most painless method of pumping the carcass free of blood.

It is obvious that the methods used for animal slaughter in the industrialized countries are designed for maximum ‘productivity’. That is why various mechanical techniques are used to ‘stun’ the animals in order to speed up the mechanical handling of them. The argument that these techniques are more humane is, frankly, dishonest propaganda put about by the meat trade. There is a great difference between paralysis and unconsciousness: the stunning techniques used, unless very precisely calculated and very accurately administered to each individual animal, may cause paralysis rather than unconsciousness. This means that the animal is motionless (paralysed) and so easy to harness and hoist up, and it looks as if it is not suffering; in fact, it may be quite conscious and in terrible pain. Further, because it is paralysed, the animal’s nervous system is largely disabled so that drainage of blood has to be achieved by rapid, total dismemberment of the carcass by machines–blood is lost by gravity, not by the natural pumping action described above. However, drainage is not as thorough by this method which severely affects the wholesomeness, colour and taste of the meat. Readers of the Qur’an (5.4) will know that (as well as blood and carrion) the meat of animals harassed or strangled or clubbed to death is haram the reason (among others) is that, in a condition of terror, hormones and chemicals are released into the body and bloodstream which distress the tissues and render them unfit for consumption. The Western techniques of stunning before slaughter, because they do not guarantee unconsciousness and do not minimize the terror suffered by the animal, are not acceptable under Islamic rules of slaughter. (Details of the legislation in a number of Western countries–following controlled experiments and government surveys of stunning and slaughtering techniques with different animals–may be consulted in Karodia, 1988.)Let us turn to the two first conditions for lawful slaughtering–namely, that the person be a Muslim of sound mind, that the name of Allah be pronounced. The person must be conscious of what he or she is doing and do it, as it were, in the full awareness that Allah has permitted it and witnessed it. It does not take much imagination to work out that the act of slaughtering an animal is, by this means, individualized: the mechanized, assembly-line taking of life is not acceptable. It may well be that the further preparation of the meat for sale and consumption can (perhaps should) be mechanized so as to increase efficiency and reduce waste. But the act of taking of sentient life, allowed for the purposes of food, must be done mindfully, and may not be handed over to a machine. The moral purpose of these conditions is that human beings do not become arrogant in the dominion they are granted over the animals they farm or hunt for food. That purpose becomes clearer when we recall that there are further stipulations in the Sunna the knife must not be sharpened in front of the animal; one animal should not be slaughtered in sight of another; the animal should be (as a vet does when examining an animal) lain on its side, soothed, and held still before the knife is applied.

All these conditions taken together mean an individual and collective mindfulness, a taking of responsibility. Because the laws of Islam are moral laws, they are not required to be applied where they cannot be applied: something that is impossible to do cannot be commanded to be done–except by mad tyrants. Thus it is that, under the direst necessity, without desiring the unlawful, the unlawful is also permitted. How then is it that Muslims will not understand the mercy, the ease, of that which is prescribed for them to do, but will instead –alas too often–fall under the sway of alien persuasions and do what they must only half-heartedly, sometimes even becoming so impudent as to complain of what benefits them? How should such ingratitude be rewarded except by the reward of all moral stupidity–that, in practice, Muslims come to accept that what is good is bad, and what is bad good? The occasion of ‘Id al-Adha, the ‘Id of sacrifice, is an occasion of mercy remembered and celebrated with thanksgiving and repentance. Let it be, also, an occasion to remember our indebtedness to Islam, for the wisdom, the sanity and spirituality, of what by Allah (through the example and teaching of His Messenger, upon him be peace) is prescribed to us to do.

REFERENCE

KARODI,. A.M. (1988) ‘The Muslim methods of animal slaughter and its scientific and social relevance in non-Muslim societies’, Journal of the Institute of Muslim Minority Affairs, 9 (l),pp.173-85.