Paradoxically, despite all the dangers, warnings , most people continue to drink beyond safe levels on a weekly basis that is more than 14 units of alcohol for women and 21 units for men. At the heart of this strange contradiction is a false belief, best encapsulated by the former Prime Minister in his introduction to the first national alcohol strategy. In the document, Tony Blair assured readers that “alcohol misuse by a small minority” was responsible for the rising levels of social and health harm. In short, problem drinkers are “other people”, spoiling it for the rest of us. In reality this is not so.. Drinking alcohol has become too common amongst too many people.
Holiday stress, along with getting laid off, has caused too many a person to start drinking heavily and this situation is not unusual.. Sadly when most people think about the upcoming holidays, they think about friends, family, food and good cheer. And for many people, the weeks between Thanksgiving and New Year’s are still particularly difficult. Financial problems are tough to handle for most people at any time, but they can seem overwhelming during this season of giving. Due to unresolved stress Feelings of loneliness, isolation and despair may also intensify but alcohol and drugs are never the answer still. Unfortunately, your friend’s Many people turn to alcohol falsely believing that it helps them to relax and to cope with stress and worry. And because many people think that New Year’s Eve and similar occasions must always be celebrated with alcohol, it’s often readily available, providing another excuse to drink. It actually will likely cause more problems, and not effectively deal with the ones still not resolved Many people next tend to go to excess, extremes, and drinking larger amounts of alcohol can increase the risk of a deadly form of liver damage called cirrhosis, heart disease, some types of cancer and injuries. And even moderate drinking can often have harmful consequences in the wrong setting, such as one should not drink and drive, and drinking alcohol during a pregnancy may seriously harm a developing baby. Alcohol dependence, also called alcoholism, often means that if a person tries to stop or cut back on drinking, he or she may experience anxiety, sweating, trembling, trouble sleeping, nausea and vomiting. Drinking can be risky even for people who aren’t dependent on it. It may seriously still interfere with sleep and productivity, strain close relationships and get in the way of spending time with loved ones. It not only also puts the drinker at risk for becoming alcohol dependent as well as developing alcohol-related health problems. Too many people who really do now suffer from a drinking problem claim still don’t believe that anything is wrong. They faley try to justify that they’re drinking to cope with a particularly stressful time. In their mind, suppposedly the basic stress is the unresolved problem, not the drinking. They say they can stop drinking whenever they want, but they don’t. Two wrongs do nto make one right here too. Denial is a common obstacle that prevents many people from seeking help.
It’s also worrying that motorists are continuing to ignore the drink-drive message. ‘The anti-drinking and driving message has to be got across, not just at this time of year but at all times.’ ‘There is no safe option to drink alcohol if you’re planning on getting behind the wheel. ‘There is also no fail-safe guide as to how to stay under the legal drink drive limit – that’s why we are urging people to not drink at all if they have a vehicle with them.
“Make a choice and stick to it – drink or drive. “Don’t drink and drive,” If you drive at twice the legal alcohol limit you are at least 30 times more likely to cause a road crash than a driver who hasn’t been drinking. If you plan to drive the only safe option is not to drink. Drivers’ reaction times and motoring skills deteriorate after even a small amount of alcohol – and get worse with increased alcohol consumption. If you are convicted for a drink-driving offence you will have a criminal record, lose your licence for a minimum of one year, may go to prison for up to six months, may have to pay a significant fine and you may have difficulty hiring a car within 10 years of your conviction. If you are convicted of causing death by careless driving while under the influence of drink you face up to 14 years in prison, an unlimited fine and a minimum two-year driving ban. Other consequences include:
-facing exceptionally high insurance costs once you get your licence back.
-loss of a job (15 per cent of those convicted do), legal expenses and loss of personal transport and increased travel expenses.
-living with the knowledge that your irresponsibility has caused death, injury or severe distress to innocent people.
A research report providing results from a survey of adult drinking in Northern Ireland has been published .
Reality too many of the binge drinkers., if not already are likely to become hard core alcoholics.
The survey, conducted on behalf of the Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety, examines the amount people drink, when, where and what they drink and who they drink with.
It also examines how drinking behaviours vary across different sections of the public, the proportion of people who binge drink, problem drinking, and perceptions of drinking.
Key Findings
The key findings relating to the Adult Drinking Patterns Survey in Northern Ireland 2008 are:
* More than seven in ten (72%) adults drink alcohol.
* A larger proportion of males (74%) than females (70%) drink alcohol.
* Most drinking occurs over the weekend and peaks on Saturdays.
* The most common drink consumed is wine (50%), closely followed by beer (48%).
* Most of those who drank in the week prior to the survey had consumed alcohol at home (64%), and nearly one quarter (24%) had consumed alcohol in a pub.
* More than four in five (81%) respondents had exceeded the recommended daily limits during the week prior to the survey.
* Approximately four in five males (79%) and females (83%) exceed their recommended daily limits during the week prior to the survey.
* Nearly one quarter (24%) of respondents drank above the weekly sensible levels.
* Over one quarter (26%) of male respondents and over one fifth (22%) of female respondents drank above the weekly sensible levels in the week prior to the survey.
* Nearly a third (32%) of those who drank in the week before the survey had engaged in at least one binge drinking session.
* Males (35%) were more likely than females (29%) to binge drink.
* Over half (54%) of drinkers aged 18-29 years engaged in at least one binge drinking session in the week prior to the survey, and they are more likely to binge drink than respondents in the older groups.
* One in 10 respondents (10%) of those who drank in the week prior to the survey are highly likely to have a problem with alcohol, according to the CAGE analysis.
* Over half (56%) of those who consumed alcohol in the week prior to the survey considered themselves to be light drinkers, two in five (40%) considered themselves to be moderate drinkers and 4% considered themselves to be heavy drinkers.
Comparisons between 2005 and 2008 are:
* The proportion of adults who drank above the weekly sensible levels in the week prior to the survey significantly decreased from 29% in 2005 to 24% in 2008.
* The proportion of adults who engaged in at least one binge drinking session in the week prior to the survey significantly decreased from 38% in 2005 to 32% in 2008.
Attitudes To Alcohol Must Change. A health Minister has called for a change in attitudes towards alcohol by both the public and the drinks industry all year now too. Statistics which show an increase of in the number of people binge drinking, getting drunk and that the statistics also show that we still have a long way to deal with this major problem. 81% of people who choose to drink are still exceeding the recommended daily limits. The cost of alcohol misuse to our society is very real. In just over 10 years, there has been a startling 86% increase in the numbers of people dying due to alcohol related harm. “Now, more than ever, we should all be working together to really tackle this issue head on and I believe the drinks industry has a key role to play. Supermarkets in particular sell alcohol far too cheaply. I am extremely disappointed that despite having met with each of the major supermarkets, and received their personal assurances that they take this matter extremely seriously, those words have not as yet translated into meaningful action. “On the contrary, they are flooded with festive drinks promotions that will only encourage people to indulge further in binge drinking. This, in my view, is totally unacceptable. Action speaks louder than words. On this occasion, profit is being put before public health.” “The harsh reality is that although alcohol misuse is known to be damaging and harmful to health and well-being
, many people still drink to excess. This must change, and in this respect we all have a collective responsibility in tackling this issue – individuals, society, government and the drinks industry alike.” http://www.emaxhealth.com/2/63/27952/attitudes-alcohol-must-change.html
People are drinking more alcohol in many societies than ever before. In the UK, Ireland, Denmark, and increasingly Australia, young people drink more alcohol than those in the USA, France, and other Mediterranean countries. The way in which adolescents drink in different countries also varies. Frequency of drinking, regular drunkenness, binge drinking, and being drunk before the age of 13 years, are all indicators of an unhealthy pattern of alcohol misuse that is becoming more common. So, for example, 27% of UK 15-year-olds admit to drinking at least five drinks in a row in the past 30 days compared with 22% in 1995; in girls, as many as 29% binge drink. In the USA, 19% of 15-year-olds binge drink. Accidental death, self-harm, suicide, injury, violent behaviour, unprotected sex, alcohol dependence, and liver disease can all result. Nearly half of the alcohol drunk by these young people comes from the family home. Supermarkets, local shops, off-licences, pubs, and clubs provide the rest. http://madhavgopalkrish.wordpress.com/2008/03/22/more-young-people-drink-more/?referer=sphere_related_content/
“Reality too many of the binge drinkers., if not already are likely to become hard core alcoholics. The real problem of alcohol misuse was much wider than previously thought We are drinking more now than we have ever done since before the First World War.
Perhaps the most worrying aspect of all is the frightening age shift in alcohol use. A generation or two ago, the first experiments with binge drinking were at university or during National Service. The “victims” of those generations who started drinking in their late teens and 20s were perhaps better able to cope with the consequences than 10-14 year-olds today.
The international evidence is quite clear that the health consequences of alcohol misuse are closely linked to a nation’s total alcohol consumption and the main drivers of this are price and availability.
Holiday stress, along with getting laid off, has caused too many a person to start drinking heavily and this situation is not unusual.. Sadly when most people think about the upcoming holidays, they think about friends, family, food and good cheer. And for many people, the weeks between Thanksgiving and New Year’s are still particularly difficult. Financial problems are tough to handle for most people at any time, but they can seem overwhelming during this season of giving. Due to unresolved stress Feelings of loneliness, isolation and despair may also intensify but alcohol and drugs are never the answer still. Unfortunately, your friend’s Many people turn to alcohol falsely believing that it helps them to relax and to cope with stress and worry. And because many people think that New Year’s Eve and similar occasions must always be celebrated with alcohol, it’s often readily available, providing another excuse to drink. It actually will likely cause more problems, and not effectively deal with the ones still not resolved Many people next tend to go to excess, extremes, and drinking larger amounts of alcohol can increase the risk of a deadly form of liver damage called cirrhosis, heart disease, some types of cancer and injuries. And even moderate drinking can often have harmful consequences in the wrong setting, such as one should not drink and drive, and drinking alcohol during a pregnancy may seriously harm a developing baby. Alcohol dependence, also called alcoholism, often means that if a person tries to stop or cut back on drinking, he or she may experience anxiety, sweating, trembling, trouble sleeping, nausea and vomiting. Drinking can be risky even for people who aren’t dependent on it. It may seriously still interfere with sleep and productivity, strain close relationships and get in the way of spending time with loved ones. It not only also puts the drinker at risk for becoming alcohol dependent as well as developing alcohol-related health problems. Too many people who really do now suffer from a drinking problem claim still don’t believe that anything is wrong. They faley try to justify that they’re drinking to cope with a particularly stressful time. In their mind, suppposedly the basic stress is the unresolved problem, not the drinking. They say they can stop drinking whenever they want, but they don’t. Two wrongs do nto make one right here too. Denial is a common obstacle that prevents many people from seeking help.
For liver disease and other medical conditions, there can be a time lag of 10 or more years from the onset of serious drinking to reaping the consequences. Now we are seeing patients, particularly women, in their 20s with advanced alcoholic liver disease – a real tragedy for their family as well as themselves.”
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