|
APA
Offers Tips for Appropriate Holiday Alcohol Consumption
 As
the holiday season approaches, with its many social activities,
the American Psychiatric Association’s (APA) Council
on Addiction Psychiatry recommends safe and moderate consumption
of holiday libations.
APA’s
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders,
Fourth Edition Text Revision (DSM-IV-TR), states that
as many as 90 percent of adults in the U.S. have had experience
with alcoholic beverages, and 60 percent of males and
30 percent of females have had one or more alcohol-related
adverse life event. The following tips are recommendations
for a safe holiday season:
- Do
not drink and drive, use heavy machinery, or combine
alcohol with other medications. Alcohol impairs
the ability to react, causes drowsiness, and affects
judgment. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
(NHTSA) reports that about three in 10 Americans will
be involved in an alcohol-related car accident at some
time in their lives. NHTSA estimates that alcohol was
involved in 39 percent of fatal crashes and accounted
for the deaths of 16,694 people in 2004.
- People
with a family history of alcoholism, or a prior history
of alcohol abuse, are at increased risk of alcoholism.
People in recovery from an alcohol-related disorder
should not drink. More than one-half of American adults
have direct family experience with alcohol problems,
which cost Americans more than 100,000 lives and approximately
$185 billion each year. For individuals in recovery
from alcohol abuse or dependence, small amounts of alcohol
typically lead to relapse. People who are younger than
the legal drinking age should not consume alcohol.
- Pregnant
women or women trying to get pregnant should
not drink at all. Alcohol consumption interferes with
growth and development of the fetus, causing reduced
birth weight, birth defects, learning and behavior disorders,
and newborn distress.
For most adults,
moderate alcohol use - up to two drinks per day for men
and one drink per day for women and older people - generally
does not result in health problems. However, alcoholism,
or alcohol addiction, is a progressive disorder and, in
2004, more than 15 million Americans ages 12 or older
were classified as being dependant on or had abused alcohol
(2004 National Survey on Drug Use and Health).
Alcoholism
may include the following symptoms – craving: a
strong need or urge to drink; loss of control: not being
able to stop once drinking has begun; physical dependence:
withdrawal symptoms such as nausea, sweating, shakiness;
and tolerance: the need to drink greater amounts to get
“high” or experience and altered state of
mind.
If you or a
loved-one is struggling with an alcohol-related addiction,
consult with a medical doctor about possible treatment
options.
More information
on the impact of alcohol and drug abuse can be found in
the APA brochure, Alcohol,
Drug Abuse and Mental Disorders - Reducing the Economic
and Human Costs. |
