Effects of Alcohol Abuse on Men & Women

With the big war on drugs today, many people seem to forget about the number one legal drug of choice: alcohol. While many people can drink responsibly, it’s the number one drug that is often abused. Unfortunately, alcohol addiction can make people behave irrationally, causing abuse, the breakup of families, and even death by liver disease. It’s a problem that affects almost every modern country in the world today.

The statistics are shocking for those men and women who have reached their midlife. Often alcohol addiction is something that is kept covered up. How can you discern if someone is simply having a bit too much fun, or whether they drink several ounces of alcohol on a daily basis? For each person it may be different, but one thing is certain: if alcohol is causing issues in your life, you have a drinking problem.

Unfortunately, the effects of alcohol abuse on men and women are often passed onto others. The family is the first to suffer. And it won’t be just spouses, but children, and even grandparents, and aunts and uncles who must cope with the fallout.

Even if a person is single, they may be suffering from depression, or have trouble at work, because they’re drinking too much. Even work colleagues can feel the impacts of having another who is coming to work hungover, or perhaps who is drinking at lunch time.

The better question may be, who isn’t suffering from an alcoholic’s addiction?

The statistics are quite shocking, particularly among people who are middle-aged. If they haven’t managed to kick their crazy teenaged years, alcohol addiction can bite back by the 40s.

The highest rates of alcohol abuse in men are around 25 to 39 years of age. Men seem to do their heavier drinking during their young adulthood, before assuming a state of responsibility.

For women, their highest drinking rate is between 21 to 34 years of age. But men in this age range remain among the highest users.

For people who are middle aged and abusing alcohol, there can be more harm done. For men with mid-life addiction, they can be causing domestic violence, having a midlife crisis and suffer from depression.

Women who are middle aged and suffer from addiction are often separated or divorced, have children living with the father, and are unemployed.

You can begin to understand that the older the alcohol-addicted person gets, that the more the adverse effects of alcohol on one’s life.

Sadly, in nearly every scenario, most countries have dedicated a greater portion of funds for treating alcohol addiction, but spend almost nothing on its prevention. Can you even recall anything beyond a “don’t drink and drive” campaign to suggest that drinking is bad for you? It’s sad that alcohol addiction is only considered bad when it has adverse effects on society.

Sources:
http://www.aafp.org/afp/20000701/117.html
http://web.utk.edu/~dap/SA2003/Women&ETOH.html