Although we don't know the causes, we know at least one risk factor. Earlier, I said that 1 out of every 10 social drinkers will develop an alcohol problem. But if you have one parent who is alcoholic, your chances of becoming alcoholic increase from 10 percent to 28 percent. And if you have two alcoholic parents, you have a 40 percent chance of becoming alcoholic. From studies of twins born to alcoholic parents and then raised by nonalcoholics, we know that there is a genetic factor related to this disease.
Some people are at higher risk because of their genetic makeup.
So far, genetics hasn't accounted for all known cases of alcoholism. Some children of alcoholic parents have not developed the disease, while some children of social drinkers have. Until we have more knowledge, the safest approach is for all drinkers to view themselves as being at risk. In any random group of 100 adults, we can expect 60 to be drinkers. Some will drink rarely and some will drink frequently.