Alcohol Abuse

Alcohol Abuse Overview

Americans have a complicated history with alcohol. At the end of the 19th century, politicians, women's groups, and churches banded together to convince lawmakers to outlaw alcohol. In 1919, the U.S. Congress passed the 18th Amendment, making the sale and distribution of alcohol illegal. Alcohol consumption declined but did not stop. In 1933, Prohibition ended and since then, millions of Americans have made alcohol a part of their social life.

In the 1960s, E. M. Jellinek pioneered the idea that excessive and harmful use of alcohol was a disease. Within a decade, public campaigns were launched in the United States to educate people about alcoholism as an illness.

Definitions
In 1980, the American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual III refined the definition of alcoholism by differentiating between alcohol abuse and dependence. People continue to use the terms "alcoholism" when they mean any harmful use of alcohol and "problem drinking" when they mean abuse, when in fact alcoholism and abuse have specific clinical definitions.

Alcoholism, also known as alcohol dependence, is a chronic, progressive, and potentially fatal disease. Characteristics of alcoholism include the following:

• Drinking excessive amounts frequently
• Inability to curb drinking despite medical, psychological, or social complications
• Increased tolerance to alcohol
• Occurrence of withdrawal symptoms when the person stops drinking

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Alcohol abuse is a chronic disease in which the person refuses to give up drinking even though it causes neglect of important family and work obligations. Abuse, left untreated, can lead to dependence. Characteristics of alcohol abuse include the following:

• Drinking when it is dangerous (e.g., while driving)
• Frequent, excessive drinking
• Interpersonal difficulties with family, friends, or coworkers caused by alcohol
• Legal problems related to drinking

Incidence and Prevalence of Alcohol Abuse
Alcohol use typically begins in the late teens and early twenties, although a substantial number of people start drinking even earlier. The National Institutes of Health reports that the younger the age, the greater the chance the person will abuse or become dependent on alcohol.

More than 7.4% of Americans abuse or are dependent on alcohol. Dependency affects men five times more often than women. Studies show that most people who are dependent on alcohol do not receive proper medical treatment.

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