Long-Term Health Risks. Over time, excessive alcohol use can lead to the development of chronic diseases and other serious problems including: High blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, liver disease, and digestive problems.
An estimated 15 million people struggle with an alcohol use disorder in the United States, but less than 10% of them receive treatment. More than 65 million Americans report binge drinking in the past month, which is more than 40% of the total of current alcohol users. Teen alcohol use kills 4,700 people each year.
Risky alcohol use includes binge drinking, heavy drinking, and any use by pregnant women or those under age 21. Binge drinking is drinking five or more drinks on a single occasion for men or four or more drinks on a single occasion for women.
Known Specific Risk Factors
Having a biological family member with alcoholism or drug addiction. Having a mental health condition such as bipolar disorder, depression, or anxiety. Experiencing peer pressure to drink, especially as a young adult. Having low self-esteem or self-worth.
Social Factors
Family plays the biggest role in a person's likelihood of developing alcoholism. Children who are exposed to alcohol abuse from an early age are more at risk of falling into a dangerous drinking pattern. Starting college or a new job can also make you more susceptible to alcoholism.
Genetic, psychological, social and environmental factors can impact how drinking alcohol affects your body and behavior.
Research has also shown that alcohol misuse increases the risk of liver disease, cardiovascular diseases, depression, and stomach bleeding, as well as cancers of the oral cavity, esophagus, larynx, pharynx, liver, colon, and rectum.
People who binge drink are more likely to have unprotected sex and multiple sex partners. These activities increase the risk of unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections, including HIV.
Alcohols bind with other atoms to create secondary alcohols. These secondary alcohols are the three types of alcohol that humans use every day: methanol, isopropanol, and ethanol.
There are three main categories that users of alcohol fall into; social drinker, alcohol abuser or alcoholic.
People drink alcohol for various reasons including relaxation, socializing, escaping problems, etc. For some people, consuming alcohol can lead to alcohol dependence if they drink too often.
Individual-level risk factors may include a person's genetic predisposition to addiction or exposure to alcohol prenatally. Individual-level protective factors might include positive self-image, self-control, or social competence.
Genetics, body weight, gender, age, what type of beverage, food in your stomach, medications in your system, and your state of health, influence how people respond to alcohol.
They may want to try alcohol but often do not fully recognize its effects on their health and behavior. Other reasons youth drink alcohol include: Peer pressure. Increased independence or the desire for it.
Food content in the stomach: Having food in your stomach can help slow the absorption of alcohol and rate of intoxication. Mood: Emotions, such as stress, can change your stomach enzymes and affect how your body processes alcohol. Sex: Women tend to experience the effects of alcohol quicker and longer than men.
Alcohol-related risk is defined as follows: lifetime risk for alcohol consumption of more than 2 standard drinks per day. single occasion risk for alcohol consumption of more than 4 standard drinks at a single occasion.
What are the causes and effects of alcoholism? Typically, alcoholism is caused by a combination of genetic and environmental influences. This form of addiction usually causes damage to a person's mental, physical, and emotional health, and will require professional help to overcome.
High-risk alcohol use is defined by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) as more than four drinks per day or 14 in a week for men, and more than three drinks a day or seven per week for women.
International research showed that common mental disorders such as depression, anxiety, social anxiety, stress, alexithymia and having insecure attachment styles are risk factors for alcohol use disorder (AUD).