Is your drinking habit getting on your spouse's nerves? Do you feel that your family is slowly drifting away from you? Is your life moving in a direction that you otherwise don't want to go? Are you one of the millions of people suffering from alcoholism?

Often times it is difficult to accept the fact that one is already suffering from the symptoms of alcoholism. Sometimes this starts out as light indulging with a group of friends. Sometimes work dictates the occasion of alcohol consumption, maybe a few shots of alcohol with important clients, but sometimes this innocent indulging can progress into chronic bouts of heavy alcohol drinking and before you can say no to another drink you are already deep into the habit. An alcoholic can neither refrain from drinking nor control the amount of alcohol he consumes. Once the addiction has set in, physical and psychological dependency on alcohol are expected.

According to a 2007 Science Daily report, both boys and girls who drank just to experiment with alcohol were also more likely to initiate drinking at a later age, compared to those who drank for other reasons.

There is an estimated 5.6 million people in the United States alone that are alcoholics and about one fourth of them are suffering from serious complications. There is a varying rate of alcoholism among populations from various geographical locations. The country with the highest incidence of alcoholism among its population is France followed by the United States, Switzerland and Sweden.

Many people who have alcohol problems are successful in other areas of their lives, and they might even be able to hide their problem for years. These people often deny that they have a problem. The good news is that when people admit to themselves and others that they have a problem and make a commitment to change, most are able to cut their drinking back to a safe level or to quit altogether.

There is a lower incidence rate of alcoholism in rural areas compared with urban areas. Most of these alcoholics are found in homes, factories and offices and only very few of them are the "skid row" type of people.

Studies also show that most of these alcoholics are living with spouses in well-founded homes and have established jobs. A high percentage of people suffering from alcoholism hold jobs involving special responsibilities and or skills.

People who drink heavily over many years might develop other health conditions as a result of drinking, along with problems with family and work relationships and legal problems (such as being arrested for drunk driving). Treatment can help prevent or reduce such problems.

Economic factors greatly affect a person's drinking patterns. High profiled businessmen drink at their exclusive men's club. Suburban dwellers drink at home parties with friends, family and neighbors. There are those who drink at local taverns. Even culture affects a person's predisposition to alcoholism. Studies show that the Irish and the Poles are among the cultural group with the highest incidence rate of alcoholism in the United States.

An alcoholism counselor commonly encourages the alcoholic to establish an alcohol-free lifestyle that involves participating in self-help groups to aid in one's recovery, avoiding social contact with alcoholics, and replacing alcohol-related activities with healthy recreational activities.

The Italians, Greeks and Jews on the other hand show the least number of alcoholics despite their heavy alcohol consumption. People in specific work groups have also shown high incidences of alcoholism. These include bartenders, night-club operators, liquor salesmen and seamen. The list of people who have been lured by alcohol can go on and every year the number is rising.

It is your responsibility to say no and not become part of the statistics. Personal discipline and awareness can be your guiding rule. Countless homes and happy families have been ruined by irresponsible drinking. Alcoholism has taken so many successful careers, happy marriages and promising futures. Alcoholism at its worst has taken great many lives most often innocent ones.

Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) is one of the most common known causes of infant mental retardation, and is the only cause of this deformity that is preventable. Babies with classic FAS are born abnormally small and typically do not manifest normal growth as they get older. Babies with FAS may be born with small eyes, small flat cheeks, or a short or upturned nose.  Moreover, the organs, especially the heart, of the babies with FAS may not develop properly.

If recently you feel that you or your loved one is drinking unusually heavy, don't you think it is time to slow down or better yet stop? Try to assess your drinking habits or talk with a health professional. There is certainly more to life than just a bottle of vodka.

Michael Russell

Your Independent guide to Alcoholism

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Michael_Russell

The following represents some of the classic alcoholic behaviors in the fourth and final stage of alcoholism: the realization of being out of control, unreasonable resentments and hostility toward others, the possibility of alcoholic psychosis, devaluation of personal relationships, obsession with drinking, auditory and visual hallucinations, nameless fears and anxieties such as feelings of impending doom or destruction, the "DTs," the collapse of the alibi system, impaired thinking, moral deterioration, benders (lengthy intoxications), continual loss of control, "the shakes," and persistent remorse.

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