Alcohol Statistics

Each year, a typical young person in the United States is inundated with more than 1,000 commercials for beer and wine coolers in addition to several thousand fictional drinking incidents on television. Alcohol is involved in 50% of all driving fatalities. In the United States, every 30 minutes, someone is killed in an alcohol related traffic accident. Over 15 million Americans are dependent on alcohol. 500,000 are between the age of 9 and 12. Each year the liquor industry spends almost $2 billion dollars on advertising and encouraging the consumption of alcoholic beverages. Americans spend over $90 billion dollars on alcohol each year. On average, Americans may consume over 25 gallons of beer, 2 gallons of wine, and 1.5 gallons of distilled spirits each year. Pregnant women who drink are feeding alcohol to their babies. Unfortunately the underdeveloped liver of the baby can only burn alcohol at half the rate of its mother, so the alcohol stays in the baby's system twice as long. Each year, students spend $5.5 billion on alcohol. That is more than they spend on soft drinks, tea, milk, juice, coffee, or books combined. 56% of students in grade 5 to 12 say that alcohol advertising encourages them to drink. 6.6% of employees in full time jobs report heavy drinking, defined as drinking five or more drinks per occasion on five or more days in the past 30 days. The highest percentage of heavy drinkers (12.2%) is found among unemployed adults between the age of 26 to 34. Up to 40% of all industrial fatalities and 47% of industrial injuries can be linked to alcohol consumption and Alcoholism. In 2000, almost 7 million persons age 12 to 20 were binge drinkers. That means about one in five persons under the legal drinking age were binge drinkers. The 2001 survey shows 25 million (one in ten) Americans surveyed reported driving under the influence of alcohol. This report is nearly three million more than the previous year. Among young adults age 18 to 25 years, almost 23% drove under the influence of alcohol. Drunk driving is proving to be even deadlier than what we previously knew. The latest death statistics released by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), using a new method of calculation, shows that 17,488 people where killed in alcohol related traffic accidents last year. This report represents nearly 800 more people were killed than the previous year. Alcohol is the number 1 drug problem in America. 43% of Americans have been exposed to Alcoholism in their families. Nearly 1 out of 4 Americans admitted to hospitals have alcohol problems or are undiagnosed alcoholics being diagnosed for alcohol related consequences. Alcohol and alcohol related problems are costing the American economy at least $100 million in health care and loss of productivity every year. Four in ten criminal offenders report alcohol as a factor in violence. Among spouse violence victims, three out of four incidents were reported to have involved alcohol use by the offender. In 1996, local law enforcement agencies made an estimated 1,467,300 arrests nationwide for driving under the influence of alcohol.

Adult Drug Rehab

The Basics Everyone Must Know About Alcoholics Anonymous And Addiction Treatment

One of the oldest forms of dealing with addiction is to be a member of Alcoholics Anonymous (simply known as AA). Many people that are getting to know about this group of people recently are having some misconceptions about the group. Some people see them as a bunch of unserious people with no effective means of dealing with the problem of alcohol addiction. Others perceive them as being irrelevant in the modern days of technology. There are even some that share the belief that the group cannot help an addict. What is AA? What do they do? How do they help the addict? All these and other relevant questions will be answered to help you make the right decision.

The Alcoholics Anonymous is a group of recovering alcoholics whose main goal is to help other addicts to stay off alcohol. It is a spiritual society that is known all over the world. They help addicts with their main program known as twelve-step, a program that has been a source of motivation for other recovery group of people. The program is aimed at making the members sober.

Before now, an alcohol addict without the financial acumen often gets help in prison, state hospital or other non-profit/religious organizations. Those that have the funds can afford to consult a psychiatrist

or get help in a private health center. Alcoholics Anonymous offers hope for those that don’t have the money as they can join the group and get help to stay off alcohol.

Many of the programs being run by many of the alcohol and centers out there are tailored along the program of the Alcoholics Anonymous. The interesting part of this is that most of the centers are administered by people that have recovered fully from addiction with the aid of the Alcoholics Anonymous. This is a great benefit as you or a loved one can interact freely with such people and learn how they got off addiction.

If you or a loved one is having problem with alcohol or drug addiction, it is highly necessary of you to seek the help of professionals. You can get the help from Alcoholic Anonymous or enter into one of the many reputable and reliable rehab centers out there. But I must advise that you look before you leap as there are many fraudulent ones out there too that will not help but rip you off of your hard earned money.

Ras Reed offers more free and detailed information on alcohol and drug addiction. You can also access the list of reputable alcohol and centers on his website. Visit http://www.rehabcenterszone.com

The Definition Of Drug Addiction

Even though drug addiction is a complex disease, assigning a definition for that disease is actually quite simple. Drug addiction is, in its simplest form, defined as the continued compulsive use of drugs in spite of adverse health or social consequences.

The definition of drug addiction should also include the fact that it is a state of heavy dependence on a specific drug. Generally, it’s thought of as a physical dependence, but in actuality, there is a psychological addiction as well as an emotional dependence. Some say that it is compulsive and pathological drug use or substance dependence.

Drug addiction is also a behavior disorder as the initial drug use is generally done as a reaction to a behavior or situation that seems out of control to the user. The user seems to have no other choice but to use that drug because of the body’s dependence on the fact that the drug will remain present in the system.

A distinction should be made between drug use and drug addiction. It is possible for people to use drugs without becoming addicted, but that is generally limited to prescription drug use. People who take drugs to cope with a physical ailment do so to control pain or the adverse effects of a physical condition. Those drugs improve the quality of life for the sufferer, but they are not necessarily addicted to the drugs.

To be dependent on a drug – or addicted to it – the user must take the drug regularly, and they experience unpleasant symptoms if they stop using the drug such as nausea or sleep disturbance. Substance abuse or addiction is present when a person uses a drug despite the harm that it causes to their system.

There is a difference between drug abuse and drug addiction. Drug abuse occurs when a person uses excessive amounts of a drug at one time or frequently. Drug addiction is present when a person cannot stop using the drug and stopping the drug seems like an impossibility.

Of course, no definition of drug addiction is complete without noting that it is both a physical dependence as well as a psychological one. Physical dependency occurs when a drug has been used habitually and the body has become accustomed to its effects. Psychological dependency is present when the drug is used habitually and the mind has become accustomed to the effects the drug produces.

When drug addiction affects a person’s life, the definition of that drug addiction becomes a bit less important than the reasons why people use. However, it can help multitudes if a definition is specified so that a better understanding of drug addiction can occur.

Dual Diagnosis, Drug Addiction, Alcoholism and Their Similarities

There are many similarities between drug addiction, alcoholism and a mental health disorder. While the combination of a drug addiction or alcohol addiction and a mental health disorder is called a dual diagnosis, they should all be treated simultaneously in a drug rehab, alcohol rehab or dual diagnosis treatment program.

Below are the listed similarities:

1. Drug addiction, alcoholism and mental health disorders are physiological diseases with strong genetic and hereditary components.

2. Drug addiction, alcoholism and mental health disorders are physical/mental/spiritual diseases.

3. Drug addiction, alcoholism and mental health disorders if left untreated are progressive, chronic, incurable, and potentially fatal.

4. Denial of the disease of drug addiction, alcoholism and mental health disorders and noncompliance with attempts at addiction treatment, drug rehab or dual diagnosis treatment are symptoms of the disorder.

5. Drug addiction, alcoholism and mental health disorders manifest loss of control in behavior, thought, and emotions.

6. Drug addiction, alcoholism and mental health disorders effect the whole family.

7. Growing powerlessness and unmanageability over drug addiction, alcoholism or mental illness’s lead to feelings of guilt, shame, depression, and despair.

8. Drug addiction, alcoholism and mental health disorders are diseases of vulnerability and isolation.

9. Both the primary symptoms of each disease AND loss of control in behavior/thought/emotion are reversible with addiction treatment or dual diagnosis treatment.

10. Recovery consists of: Stabilization of the acute disease Rehabilitation of body, mind, and spirit

11. The risk of relapse in either disease is always high, and relapse in drug addiction or alcoholism will inevitably trigger a relapse in the mental health disorder. 12. The only hope for life-long recovery lies in working our Recovery Program(s): ONE DAY AT A TIME

Differences in Your Drug Addiction Treatment Center

If you suffer from drug addiction, alcohol addiction, dual diagnosis or even an eating disorder, then you have probably thought of entering a drug rehab program at a drug addiction treatment center. Even if you have not given it some serious consideration, the odds are good that a loved one has. There are many such addiction treatment programs available, some are well publicized drug rehabs, while other addiction treatment programs seem like they are located in residential neighborhoods. The common thread for all of these drug addiction treatment programs is that each drug addiction treatment center provides the individual with an opportunity to achieve long term recovery from drugs, alcohol, their eating disorder or dual diagnosis. What is this drug addiction treatment success based on? While there may not be an actual secret to addiction treatment success, a successful drug addiction treatment center simply helps the person suffering from drug addiction or alcoholism to break through their denial, become honest and work towards wanting recovery as much as they desired drugs or alcohol. Drug addiction treatment, whether for alcoholism, dual diagnosis or an eating disorder is a process, not an event, and takes time.

Differences in Drug Addiction Treatment While each drug addiction treatment center varies in approach and the addiction treatment philosophy it chooses, some are focused heavily on a spiritual approach, while others only touch spiritually on the periphery and concentrate much more on psychological counseling. Each addiction treatment program seeks to replace the previously self destructive thoughts and behaviors with that of healthier ones.

Jonathan Huttner is a principal with lakeview Health Systems which specializes in the treatment of drug addiction, alcoholism and dual diagnosis. Lakeview also operates a gay friendly drug rehab and addiction treatment program called Freedom Rings.