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Mental health as a risk factor for alcohol dependence or abuse William Hogarth's Gin Lane, 1751. A complex combination of genetic and environmental factors influences the risk of the development of alcoholism. [81] Genes that influence the metabolism of alcohol also influence the risk of alcoholism, as can a family history of alcoholism. [82]
Ayurvedic texts concluded that alcohol was a medicine if consumed in moderation, but a poison if consumed in excess. [29] Most of the people in India and China, have continued, throughout, to ferment a portion of their crops and nourish themselves with the alcoholic product. In ancient India, alcohol was also used by the orthodox population.
The causes of alcohol abuse are complex and multi-faceted. Alcohol abuse is related to economic and biological origins and is associated with adverse health consequences. [45] Peer pressure influences individuals to abuse alcohol; however, most of the influence of peers is due to inaccurate perceptions of the risks of alcohol abuse. [48]
The Natural History of Alcoholism Revisited (1995) is a book by psychiatrist George E. Vaillant that describes two multi-decade studies of the lives of 600 American males, non-alcoholics at the outset, focusing on their lifelong drinking behaviours.
Both alcohol dependence and alcohol abuse are sometimes referred to by the less specific term alcoholism. However, many definitions of alcoholism exist, and only some are compatible with alcohol abuse. There are two major differences between alcohol dependence and alcoholism as generally accepted by the medical community.
Temperance proponents saw the alcohol problem as the most crucial problem of Western civilization. [44]: 21 Alcoholism was seen to cause secondary poverty, [68] and all types of social problems: alcohol was the enemy of everything good that modernity and science had to offer.
Alcohol abuse or dependence reported a lifetime prevalence of 18.1% and a 12-month prevalence of 3.2%. [196] Cannabis abuse or dependence reported a lifetime prevalence of 6.8% and a 12-month prevalence of 3.2%. [196] Other drug abuse or dependence has a lifetime prevalence of 4.0% and a 12-month prevalence of 0.7%. [196]
Alcohol causes a plethora of detrimental effects in society. [25] Addiction experts in psychiatry, chemistry, pharmacology, forensic science, epidemiology, and the police and legal services engaged in delphic analysis regarding 20 popular recreational substances. Alcohol was ranked 6th in dependence, 11th in physical harm, and 2nd in social ...