Risk factors for premature death in alcoholics highlighted by study Risk factors for premature death in alcoholics highlighted by study Years of heavy drinking put alcoholics at risk for a host of health problems ranging from poor nutrition to heart disease and cirrhosis of the liver.
Alcoholics also are more likely to die prematurely.
During the last several months, School of Medicine researchers have published four new studies that shed light on some of the risk factors for premature death. The researchers followed 259 male and female alcoholics who were hospitalized for treatment in the late 1960s. Most patients were in their 30s or 40s at the time they were hospitalized for treatment. We're talking about people who should be living into their 70s, but instead they're dying in their 50s. The average age of death for both male and female alcoholics in this study was 56.