Take Heed of These Alcoholism Statistics

Alcoholism is far more wildly spread and effects many more people than is often realized, with the alcoholism statistics showing 17.6 million practicing alcoholics suffering from the illness at any one moment in time in the US alone.

To be an alcoholic means that you have a dependency on alcohol, and even though you may be aware that it is extremely harmful to your health, and totally destructive of friendships and relationships, you are unable to kick the habit. The alcoholism statistics for the year 2006 show that over 22,000 deaths were alcohol related. This figure did not make any allowance for accidents of homicides. Furthermore, the number of recorded deaths as a direct result of alcohol induced liver diseases in that same year totaled over 13,000

Alcoholism is classed as a chronic disease, meaning that it is a lifetime condition. Many alcoholics, who decide to fight their alcohol dependency, join Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) for help and support. Their basic principle is to just take one day at a time. According to alcoholism statistics, one out of every 12 US adults is either alcohol dependent (an alcoholic), or is an alcohol abuser.

Alcohol abuse can be just as damaging as alcohol dependency in terms of lifestyle. It can have the same devastating effect on relationships and can also result in making you unreliable, prone to taking unannounced time out of work and failing to maintain family commitments and responsibilities. Alcoholism statistics tell us that alcohol abuse and dependency is more prevalent between the ages of 18 and 29, and that it is less common in people aged 65 years and over.

It is also known that young people who start drinking at the age of 14 are much more likely to develop serious alcohol problems than those who do not start drinking until the age of 21. Alcoholism statistics also reveal that prolonged alcohol abuse has severe long term consequences for health in terms of:

Lasting damage to certain vital organs
Increased risk of certain types of cancer
Severe nausea, diarrhea, and ulcers
Eating disorders
Vitamin and mineral deficiencies
Impotency
Hyper-tension
Harm to the immune system

Further alcoholism statistics state that pregnant mothers who drink alcohol during the term of their pregnancy, drastically increase the risk of causing Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) in their new born babies. Children born with FAS can be retarded mentally, or can be born with irreversible physical handicaps and deformities, and will be at greater risk of developing alcohol dependency themselves as they grow older.

Despite high profile anti drink-drive campaigns alcoholism statistics record that one person is killed by an alcoholically impaired driver every 30 minutes. This translates to an average of 50 fatalities each day, and a staggering 18,000 deaths as a direct result of drink-driving each and every year. It is almost unbelievable that any civilized society anywhere in the world can possibly condone such statistics.

Surely it is about time that the population as a whole takes note of these shocking alcoholism statistics and makes a top priority of reducing them drastically through improved alcohol control and better alcohol related care.

I suggest you check out my other guide on stop drinking alcohol and alcoholism statistics

Alcoholism Statistics

alcohol statistics

Take Heed of These Alcoholism Statistics

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