Alcohol Addiction and Alcohol History
Alcohol in the form of wine has been a part of history for the last 10,000 years or more and drinks known as mead and beer possibly longer. Babylonians are reported to have known how to make at least 20 different types and passed legal text on clay tablets as to the consumption.
Distilled spirits in China and India have their origin from 800 BC. It took over 1000 years for the distillation process to make its way to Europe. When the Greeks and Romans claimed to have the greatest civilization on earth were searching for drinks with flavor as all but wine herbs, mint, balsam, wormwood crab claws and oyster shells were used as flavorings.
Over the years the making of national alcoholic spirits like Russian Vodka, Scottish Whiskey, Mexican Tequila, the Greeks have Ouzo, and Italians Strega and Sambucca and there are hundreds more.
Monks in Monasteries distilled, sold and drank large amounts of alcohol (beer) as nourishment, particularly during fasting times as liquid was not seen as violating fasting rules.
In the Americas the temperance movement on alcohol and its consumption began in the mid 18th century. The number of saloons dispensing alcohol had an impact on the degradation of society during this period with and an estimated saloon for every 150-200 people, even those who did not drink. Alcohol sales were spread thin and saloon owners found it hard to make a profit and resorted to others means such as gambling and prostitution.
Prohibition on alcohol began gaining power around the mid 19th century with the 1st state law being passed in Maine in 1851 and 12 states to follow. With the beginning of WW I and the need to ration grain for food led to total Prohibition by 33 states by 1920. Employers were in support of this act due to problems with the affects of alcohol addiction on the employees.
Alcohol bootleggers were abounding throughout the country and gangster picked up speed with the smuggling of liquor from Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean. Several methods of trying to clean off denatured alcohol which had additives in it to make it undrinkable and illegal corn liquor stills were used to produce frequently toxic rotgut alcohol. During the 1st five months of 1923 hundreds of people died after drinking contaminated hooch. Officials believe the figure to be much higher. Cartels profits soared with Al Capone’s annual earnings being around $60 million and protection money and corruption within the legal system spread like the plaque. Prohibition was repealed in 1933 and the American Mafia then branched out into gambling, prostitution and drugs.
At the beginning of prohibition historians record the consumption of alcohol and alcohol addiction dramatically decreased by two thirds. Toward the end or prohibition the public began to ignore the law and attitude changed, nevertheless it took years for consumption of alcohol to reach pre-prohibition days.
Alcohol Addiction Statistics and the need for Alcohol Addiction Treatment
Each year, a typical young person in the United States is inundated with more than 1,000 commercials for beer and wine coolers and 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 total on alcohol each year.
An average American 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, more then 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 ages of 26 to 34
Up to 40% of all industrial fatalities and 47% of industrial injuries can be linked to alcohol consumption and alcohol addiction.
In 2000, almost 7 million persons age 12 to 20 was a binge drinker; that is about one in five persons under the legal drinking age was a binge drinker.
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 then what we previously know. The latest death statistics released by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), using a new method of calculation show that 17,488 people where killed in alcohol related traffic accidents last year. This report represents nearly 800 more people where killed than the previous year.
Alcohol addiction is the number 1 drug problem in America.
43% of Americans have been exposed to alcoholism and alcohol addiction in their families.
Nearly one out of 4 Americans admitted to general hospitals have alcohol problems or are undiagnosed alcoholics being diagnosed for alcohol addiction related consequences.
Alcohol addiction and alcohol related problems are costing the American economy at least $100 million in health care and lost 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.
Underage drinking of alcohol costs the country over $60 Billion dollars in 2007.
AddictionWatch.com
When in need of alcohol addiction Treatment or looking for the right addiction Treatment Center, it is important to consider all the facets of alcohol addiction or substance abuse and realize there Drug Rehab programs out there that do not necessarily have the best interest of you or you’re loved one at heart.
Most alcohol addiction Treatment Centers offer one of four types of drug or Alcohol Rehabilitation programs that vary in cost, length and most importantly success. These alcohol addiction programs offer many different kinds of treatment for the recovery of addicts, like inpatient treatment, outpatient Rehab, detox facilities, and sober living homes. Inpatient addiction treatment is generally designed for addicts who require more intensive treatment from their addictions where they will reside with supervision and counseling from certified addiction treatment professionals.
Outpatient alcohol addiction treatment is usually for those addicts who have less severe addictions and might achieve success in a Drug Rehabilitation program with a few addiction counseling sessions a week for several hours, then return home at the end of the day. Detox is the first step in recovering from alcohol addiction and benzodiazepines and offered at some addiction treatment centers, but only those with medical equipment and staff on hand to handle the safe detoxification of addicts in a comfortable environment.
For more information about alcohol addiction and alcohol addiction treatment centers, please feel free to explore our website. If you have questions about your drug use or that of a loved one, please call us at 1-866-989-4499. We are here to help!
