To receive the full edition of Recovery , become an ACA member. There seem to be quite a few people who want to blame alcohol for the problem of alcoholism. To many who hold this view, alcohol in and of itself is an evil and alcoholism is simply a product of this evil. And it is all too easy to then blame many other of society s problems on alcohol and drinking. Such a simplistic view, however, ignores the fact that our bodies produce alcohol naturally and that alcohol has known health benefits.
Alcoholism is a disease.
But it is not caused by alcohol. It is also important to note that one doesn t always have to drink excessively to be an alcoholic. In other words, alcoholics choose to be alcoholics because they choose to drink. Curing alcoholism, then, should simply be a matter of willpower. The fact of the matter is that alcoholics don t choose to be alcoholics - they just are.