Another 20 million are alcohol abusers, most of whom started to drink heavily as teenagers. About 2 out of every 3 adults use alcohol. Over half of all suicides, homicides, and accidental deaths are alcohol related. Over 10,000 young people are killed and 40,000 are injured annually in alcohol-related automobile accidents. The annual cost of lost productivity and health expenses related to alcoholism is estimated to be well over 100 billion dollars.
Alcoholism is a type of drug dependence that is both psychological and physical.
Emotions, thought processes, and judgment are first to be affected by alcohol consumption . With continued drinking, motor control becomes impaired resulting in slurred speech , slower reactions, and poor balance. Both increased body fat and drinking on an empty stomach speed the rate of alcohol intoxication . Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome Alcoholics often deny they have a problem to protect themselves from the truth about their drinking. Treatment of diseases associated with the alcoholism.