Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
essay on alcohol abuse effects
essay on alcohol abuse effects
essay on alcohol abuse effects
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Recommended: essay on alcohol abuse effects
Alcohol control
Drug and alcohol addictions can strain your personal relationships and make it hard to focus on what is really important in life. Young people are the most common addicts we see today. According to information collected by Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), about 22.5 million Americans over the age of 12 were using illicit drugs in the last month. Addiction is complicated, and it can affect brain functioning in a variety of ways. Alcoholism and drug dependence can affect all aspects of a person’s life. Many people use alcohol or another substance to ease their pain, stress, or anxiety, some use it for recreational use, and others use it as medicine. Many can use a substance without a negative effect or becoming addicted to it, but in some the substance would affect their everyday life. For example, teenagers can’t function well at school or stay focused, parents will start losing jobs, abandon their children, ruin their relationships, and their life. These substances appear to be fun and enjoyable, but they will leave you feeling helpless, isolated, heartbroken, and even ashamed. No matter how often or how little you are consuming, drug and alcohol can still causes problems in your life, at work, school, home, or in your relationships.
Alcohol is the most commonly used addictive substance in the U.S. 17.6 million people, or one in every 12 adults suffers from alcohol abuse or dependence. According to the National Survey on Drug use and Health (NSDUH) an estimated of 20 million Americans aged 12 or older used an illegal drug in the past 30 days. Alcoholism and drug dependence can affect all aspects of a person’s life. Some people are able to use recreational or prescription drugs wi...
... middle of paper ...
... drugs and alcohol for these reasons, it is common for them to continue using, eventually becoming addicted. Alcohol is considered a negative coping strategy ("Why do people," 2010). Many people turn to alcohol in order to deal with life stresses. Alcohol can only provide temporary relief. For the brief time the user consuming alcohol, the user can forget about the problems, responsibilities, of everyday life and escape to another world. Drugs and alcohol can changed the way you feel and that’s why people abuse the use especially when they are stress, unhappy, depressed, etc. Alcohol doesn’t help you deal with anxiety instead it can make your anxiety worse. In most cases people that are going through a divorce consume alcohol a lot and they can become an alcoholic. If you are drinking to numb emotional pain or if you cannot stop drinking, then you are an alcoholic.
Frey and Schonbeck explain that it is estimated that over 76 million people worldwide are affected by alcohol abuse or dependence. The chance of having an alcoholic in one’s life is very high. Children that grow up in an environment with an alcoholic may increase that child’s chance of becoming an alcoholic themselves. In the United States, the most commonly abused drug among youth is alcohol. Even though the legal drinking age is 21, nearly 20% of all alcohol consumed in the United States is by people under the legal age (83). In fact, when youth start drinking at social events in their teenage years, they are greatly increasing their risk of developing alcohol problems (85). Alcoholism can affect people of all ages. Furthermore, some experts try to differentiate between alcoholics and social drinkers. Typically, they base this off of five categories. Social drinkers do not drink alone. They consume minimal amounts of alcohol during social functions. Situational drinkers may not ever drink unless they are stressed out. These drinkers are more likely to drink by themselves. Problem drinkers can be described as a drinker that alcohol has caused problems in their life. However, they usually respond to advice given by others. Binge drinkers are out of control in their alcohol consumption. They may drink until they pass out or worse. Alcoholic drinkers have found that their lives have become unmanageable and that they are completely powerless over alcohol (84). Alcoholics should be cautious of their surroundings to prevent
The National insitute on Alcohol and alcoholism. (2012, December). Retrieved November 20, 2013, from http://www.drugabuse.gov/drug-abuse
The use of alcohol by adolescents is widely viewed as disobedience in American society. Although, alcohol use is technically illegal until the age of twenty-one (in 19 states the consumption of alcohol in not specifically illegal for people under the age of twenty-one), there is still an excessive use of dinking in teenagers today. Since alcohol is associated with all three leading causes of death among teens, it can also have less life-altering consequences such as a drop in academic performances and a decline of friend and family relationships. Also, mental disorders like anxiety, depression and behavioral issues as in loss of temper, an argumentative personality, being easily angered, and blaming others for mistakes. Alcohol is the most commonly abused drug in teenagers and society contributes to abuse by linking drinking to sophistication and good times. (“Alcohol Abuse and Youth” 1)
Today, on the other hand, Americans perceive addiction as an illness - an infection that can be dealt with. Alcohol abuse and drug reliance can influence all parts of a person’s life. The long term effects of alcohol and drug usage, both licit and illegal, can cause serious health complications affecting every organ in the body, including the brain. It can also damage emotional and mental stability, finances, careers, and impact family, friends and the entire community in which an alcoholic or drug abuser lives. This type of dysfunctional cycle is passed down from prior generations and the cycle is never
Alcohol is the most commonly used addictive substance in the US. One in every 12 adults suffers from alcohol abuse. Alcohol addiction is very common in modern ...
There are several different ways to describe substance abuse. So many people think that substance abuse only pertains to alcoholism. There is several other substances that may cause someone to be diagnosed with substance abuse disorder. Some of those things include: marijuana, alcohol, stimulants(cocaine and amphetamines), Hallucinogens, Inhalants, sedatives, and even nicotine. Even though some people may not see some of these things as things that may become addicting they are. More and more people are becoming addicted to the smallest things such as alcohol. For hundreds and thousands of American citizens alcoholism is become far too common. Alcoholism is a disease that affects many people in the United States today. It not only affects the alcoholic, but also their family, friends, co-workers, and eventually total strangers. The symptoms are many, as are the causes and the effects.
A majority of American citizens can honestly say that they, or a loved one, have been personally victimized by the dangerous side effects of alcohol. Yet alcohol is still considered a recreational beverage, that too many people take for granted. The addiction to alcohol is officially labelled as “Alcoholism.” Alcoholism can affect one’s life in a numerous amount of ways. It is an overlooked danger in the U.S. which can negatively affect the youth of America and the economy, which is why it is an enormous danger to the U.S.
Many do not clearly understand how serious alcohol abuse really is. According to CDC (Centres for Disease Control and Prevention), “Excessive alcohol use is responsible for approximately 88,000 deaths in the United States each year”. In addition to that, the NIH (National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism) claims that alcohol is a risk factor for cancers like liver, breast, mouth, esophagus, and many more. According to Steven Reinbersg’s article titled as “Third of Americans Have Alcohol Problems at Some Point”, more than “30 percent of Americans say they have had problems with alcohol”, proven by studies. Numerous Americans take advantage of alcohol frequently, but do not realize what kind of side affects it can bring for themselves. Though, alcoholism is often brought to awareness, one may feel like they are not educated enough about it.
That being said, drugs and alcohol, can cause ones to lose their lifestyle and even their loved ones. Using and abusing drugs and alcohol can also lead to addiction. This creates a whole different empire in one’s life. Some may even steal, lie and cheat, just to obtain their ability to get there next fix. Sometimes getting their next fix can even create a door way to putting them in jail or prison. Even to the point of no return, this could create the loss of one’s own
“For every family that is impacted by drugs, there are another 10 to 15 families impacted by alcohol abuse. It's a pretty big deal. We have a tendency to only look at part of the puzzle.” (Kevin Lewis). As a society we tend to categorize the severity of addiction in a way that drugs are the most dangerous and alcohol being just a problem. Because alcohol addiction can be a slow progressive disease many people don’t see it in the same light as drug addiction. An addiction to drugs is seen as being a more deadly and dangerous issue then that of alcohol because a drug addiction can happen more quickly and can kill more quickly. Alcohol is something that is easy to obtain, something that is found at almost every restaurant. People with an alcohol addiction can not hide from alcohol as easy as a drug addict. Approximately 7 million Americans suffer from alcohol abuse and another 7 million suffer from alcoholism. (Haisong 6) The dangers of alcohol affect everyone from children with alcoholic parents, to teenagers who abuse alcohol, then to citizens who are terrorized by drunk drivers.
Alcohol abuse is the most common problem, nowadays. In fact, majority of people drink alcohol repeatedly to the point where they have difficulty to stop. Statistics show that, as much as, “40% of college students report drinking five or more drinks in one episode” (Walters & Baer, 2006). Alcohol has become more popular over the years as advertisements, simultaneously with commercials of it, filled the media. It also is easily accessible and cheap in comparison to other psychoactive substances. On the other hand, alcohol safety awareness programs are barely noticeable. My research will present how alcohol and its abuse gets into people’s lives and how it influences their physical and mental health, as well as, social existence.
Alcoholism is known to be one of the largest illnesses that affect individuals in the world today with nearly 32 million Americans who have struggled with it in one year alone. It is becoming a much larger problem that is reoccurring and wiping out a large portion of the population. Some individuals might think that excessive drinking isn’t a problem, but others find that it is completely
The use and abuse of alcohol and other drugs during adolescence and early adulthood remains a serious health problem in the United States. Among the drug classes, alcohol is the most frequently used substance by adolescents and that is followed by marijuana and tobacco. The consequences of alcohol and drug abuse are critical on both a personal and social level. For the developing young adult drug and alcohol abuse threatens motivation, hinders the cognitive processes, increases the risk of accidental injury or death, and contributes to debilitating mood disorders. In addition, it contributes to educational failure, juvenile crime, increase in mental health services, and high cost in health care. Oftentimes, there are underlying mental health issues that are undiagnosed or existing conditions that are medicated which can invariably lead to an increase in adolescent alcohol and substance use disorder.
Drug abuse and addiction not only has negative effects in the lives of the people involved, but also in the lives of their close relatives, friends and immediate society. It leads to disintegration, failure in school, loss of employment and violence. Although intake of drugs is a voluntary and conscious decision initially, continuous intake of drugs changes the brain and challenges the self-control of the “addicted person” and inhibits the ability to resist extreme desire for drug intake.
Drug addiction is a very big problem in today’s society. Many people have had their lives ruined due to drug addiction. The people that use the drugs don’t even realize that they have an addiction. They continue to use the drug not even realizing that their whole world is crashing down around them. Drug addicts normally lose their family and friends due to drug addiction.