Explanations for Problem Drinking and What We Can Do About It (Excerpt)

Source: https://thebluereview.org/

Jessica Wells

05.14.2018

Alcohol use is estimated to cost the United States $249 billion per year and result in the death of approximately 27.9 per 100,000 individuals.

Alcohol use is highly prevalent with research from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Service Administration (SAMHSA) reporting 62.2% of males and 50.1% of females over the age of 25 having reported past month use. Although the majority of alcohol use is not considered problematic, problem drinking including alcohol abuse, dependence, and binge drinking presents serious issues for both the user and for society. Individuals engaged in problem drinking may develop physical and mental health issues including liver disease, pancreatitis, heart disease, certain cancers, anxiety, and depression.

Social issues may also develop including reduced school performance and increased violent antisocial behavior. Given these effects, scholars have long attempted to understand the causes and correlates of problem drinking. Research examining why individuals engage in problem drinking can generally be divided into those that examine environmental and those that examine biological predictors.

https://thebluereview.org/explanations-for-problem-drinking/