Alcohol Problems

"According to the research literature, in the U.S., alcohol is linked with an estimated 5,000 deaths in people under age 21 each year. This is more deaths than from all the illegal drugs combined."

"Research shows that continual use of alcohol can lead to erosive gastritis, which can limit the absorption of nutrients and vitamins associated with several serious neurological and mental disorders, including memory loss, sleep disturbances, brain damage, loss of sexual responsiveness, and psychosis such as Korsakoff' syndrome and Wernike's Encephalopathy."

"Most teens are aware of the dangers of drinking and driving, yet many ignore these dangers. And many teens don't seem to recognize the dangers of driving after using illicit drugs, including marijuana. Educational efforts need to be targeted to include the dangers of both drinking and drug-related driving."

"According to mental health and substance abuse experts, the finding regarding the relationship between alcoholism and depression and alcoholism is noteworthy because many people, including healthcare practitioners, tend to perceive depression and alcoholism as separate problems, when in fact, they are frequently associated with one another. In short, when an individual is treated for alcoholism, he or she should also be checked for depression and when an person is treated for depression, he or she should be checked for alcoholism."

"A dysfunctional family is a family in which misbehavior, abuse, or conflict by individual family members takes place on a regular basis, leading other members of the family to enable, reinforce, and perpetuate such behaviors."

"Of all the Americans who are dependent on alcohol, 500,000 are between the ages of 9 and 12."

"Interventions should be carefully planned and developed by professional substance abuse counselors who are experienced in such procedures. The primary purpose of an intervention is to get the alcoholic to go into a treatment program."

"Drug and alcohol abuse statistics reveal that more than 67% of the funding for drug and alcohol treatment programs comes from public sources. Private insurance pays for about 14% of these services and the patients pay for about 10%."

"Anheuser-Busch, brewers of Budweiser, hair-tests their employees to be sure that they are not using any drugs more dangerous than the one they make."

"In 1998 in the United States, 1,668 drivers from the ages of 16 to 20 were involved in alcohol related fatal motor vehicle crashes. Another 21,000 were involved in alcohol-related accidents that resulted in injury."

"According to a 1995 national survey of fourth through sixth graders who read the Weekly Reader, 30 percent of the students stated that they received "a lot" of pressure from fellow classmates to drink beer. Do our elementary schools need to mirror the trend taking place in the workplace and start screening and testing for alcohol consumption and alcohol abuse?"

"Since nothing can change what took place in the past, it is hoped that all of the state and federal prisoners who abused drugs and/or alcohol in the past have access to alcoholism and alcohol abuse programs as well as to substance abuse and addiction treatment while they are still in prison."

"Research indicates that adolescents who use alcohol may remember 10 percent less of what they have learned than those who don't drink."

"According to a 2007 Science Daily report, school age kids with multiple reasons to drink, including reasons related to coping with life, show the heaviest and most problematic drinking behaviors."

"In the United States, 20% of alcoholics who try to quit drinking on their own without medical management die of alcohol withdrawal delirium."

"You can help police catch drunken drivers and make the roads safer for everyone. Law enforcement officers can't be everywhere at once but the cooperation of observant and concerned drivers can help them. Call 911 on your cell phone if you observe a driver who appears to be driving while intoxicated."

"U.S. alcoholism research shows that people who have been drinking are at greater risk of being the victim of violent crime and are also more likely to be involved in accidents, fires, and to engage in self-harm."

"Substance abuse research shows that doctors at times fail to accurately identify women who are alcohol abusers or alcohol dependent because women have a tendency to seek treatment for nonspecific health problems and issues such as anxiety, insomnia, or nervousness."

"U.S. research studies on twins strongly suggest a very strong genetic link to alcoholism."

"Addiction research statistics reveal that every American adult pays nearly $1,000 per year for the damages caused by addiction."

"If you drink to an excess, you may consume more alcohol than your body can metabolize and eliminate. Under these circumstances, the body and the brain may become "overloaded" and result in alcohol poisoning. If the amount of alcohol is great enough, the body and the brain will 'shut down' and the person can die as a result."

"U.S. research shows that people older than 65 years and having more than seven drinks per week or more than three drinks per occasion are drinking too much."

"According to the alcoholism research literature, alcohol withdrawal syndrome is a group of symptoms exhibited by people who suddenly stop drinking alcohol after a pattern of repeated and excessive ingestion. These symptoms can range from mild to moderate to severe and include both physical and emotional components."

"Substance abuse research demonstrates the fact that a man who has more than four drinks per occasion or more than 14 drinks per week is drinking too much. Simply stated: this man is abusing alcohol."

"It is important for drinkers to understand that when they frequently and regularly engage in abusive drinking such as binge drinking, they increase the risk of becoming alcohol dependent. This fact is especially difficult for young people, many of whom feel that they are 'bullet-proof' and in total control of their drinking."

"The findings of the 2001 National Household Survey on Drug Abuse and Addiction demonstrated that, while millions of Americans habitually drink alcohol, swallow prescription drugs, smoke pot, and snort cocaine, a number of drug users who meet or exceed the standards that indicate that they need professional treatment do not realize or accept the fact that they have a drug or an alcohol abuse problem."

"The alcohol abuse and alcoholism research shows that as people age, it takes fewer drinks for them to become intoxicated. Moreover, research also shows that up to one-half of the 100 most prescribed drugs for older people react adversely with alcohol."

"As children move from adolescence to young adulthood, they encounter dramatic physical, emotional, and lifestyle changes. Developmental transitions, such as puberty and increasing independence, have been associated with alcohol use. So in a sense, just being an adolescent may be a key risk factor not only for starting to drink but also for drinking dangerously."

"Many people turn to the use of alcohol for pain relief and due to its ability to depress the central nervous system and slow down the brain and the nervous system. As a result, drinking alcohol for many people delivers a certain amount of pain relief."

"Alcohol abuse and alcoholism research demonstrates the fact that if you consume alcoholic beverages, it's important to know whether your drinking patterns are safe, risky or harmful. Answering these questions will take only a few minutes, and will generate personalized results based on your age, gender and drinking patterns."