Alcoholism abuse has myriad societal effects

Alcohol abuse is an insidious disease responsible for untold amounts of suffering and pain for both alcoholics and their families. The facts are that alcoholism abuse is directly responsible for 100,000 deaths through illness and disease each year in the United States.

This number is only the tip of the iceberg of personal disaster that alcohol abuse causes. It doesn’t account for the people killed in alcohol-related car crashes and other accidents or the people killed in crimes related to alcohol. According to law enforcement sources, alcohol abuse is a factor in nearly half of all murders, suicides and automobile accidents.

Less deadly, but also detrimental to society as a whole, are the economic costs of alcoholism. Alcoholism results in lost worker productivity, more

Alcohol when consumed in moderation, can be relatively harmless and in some cases can be beneficial to health. Unfortunately, genetic and societal factors predispose many people to be extremely at risk for being unable to control their alcohol consumption. Genetic factors appear to be very influential regarding alcoholism — nearly four out of five children of alcoholics eventually become alcoholics themselves. According to government medical studies, nearly 14 million Americans abuse alcohol. To put that in perspective, the entire population of the state of Illinois is less than the number of alcoholics in the U.S.

Alcohol abuse results in impairment of judgment, and impairment of hearing, sight, comprehension and motor ability. Heavy drinkers can suffer from various emotional problems, including violent and quick mood swings. If denied alcohol, heavy drinkers can go through withdrawal, and become highly agitated and physically and emotionally abusive to others.

Chronic alcoholism is characterized by an increasing tolerance for alcohol, resulting in the alcoholic needing more and more alcohol to feel “normal.” The effect of these massive amounts of alcohol intake on the body are devastating, resulting in organ failure and, eventually death. Health problems associated with alcohol abuse include hypoglycemia, hypertension, brain damage, heart damage, terminal liver damage, swollen blood vessels, gastrointestinal problems and chronic pancreatitis. One out of five chronic alcoholics eventually develop cirrhosis of the liver.

Many alcoholics are unaware that they have a problem with alcohol abuse, employing a number of complex psychological maneuvers to convince others and themselves that they are in control of their drinking. Getting an alcoholic to admit that he or she has a problem with drinking is key to helping them overcome this potentially life-threatening disease.

Tags: alcohol abuse statistics, effects of alcohol, teenage alcohol abuse