Facts About Alcohol Abuse & Alcoholism

Adult men drinking more than 14 alcoholic beverages a week and women more than seven are at risk of abusing alcohol. One drink is a 12-ounce beer, 5 ounces of wine, or 1.5 ounces of distilled liquor. The World Health Organization estimates that 1.8 million people die each year in alcohol-related incidents. Once abuse begins, especially among teenagers and young adults, it's difficult to stop and can lead to significant health problems later in life.

Definition

• Alcoholism is defined by the inability to stop or reduce drinking; having a compulsion to drink; having a high tolerance to the effects of alcohol; and dependence such as suffering from withdrawal once drinking is stopped.

Family Influence

• Alcohol abuse can be genetic in people who have an alcoholic in the immediate family, or over several generations, and are at risk of becoming an abuser.

Starting Young

• Young people who start drinking before age 15 are more likely to become alcoholics as adults.

Peer Pressure

• Environment plays a role in alcohol abuse, including peer pressure, the ease of purchasing alcohol, consumption among family and friends, and home life.

Deaths

• An estimated 1,400 Americans between the ages of 18 and 25 die annually from alcohol-related accidents, including drunken driving.

Number Increases

• The United Kingdom's Office for National Statistics reported that alcohol-related deaths rose from 4,144 in 1991 to 8,386 deaths for 2005.