One Third of Americans Report Alcohol Abuse Problems

About 30 percent of Americans report having some form of alcohol use disorder at some point in their lifetimes, including 17.8 percent with alcohol abuse and 12.5 percent with alcohol dependence, according to a report in the July issue of Archives of General Psychiatry, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

Alcohol abuse and dependence are marked by patterns of alcohol consumption that contribute to significant impairment or distress, according to background information in the article. These disorders lead to a variety of negative consequences, including car crashes, domestic violence, birth defects and economic costs.

Deborah S. Hasin, Ph.D., of Columbia University Medical Center, New York, and colleagues analyzed data from face-to-face interviews conducted between 2001 and 2002 with 43,093 adults selected to represent the national population. Interviewers asked about all symptoms of alcohol abuse and dependence listed in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV). A diagnosis of alcohol abuse required one or more of the criteria for abuse, while a diagnosis of alcohol dependence required three or more of the seven criteria for dependence. The participants were also diagnosed for depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety disorders, substance abuse disorder and other psychiatric conditions.

During the 12 months prior to the survey, 8.5 percent of adults had an alcohol use disorder, including 4.7 percent with alcohol abuse and 3.8 percent who were alcohol-dependent. "Alcohol dependence was significantly more prevalent among men, whites, Native Americans, younger and unmarried adults and those with lower incomes," the authors write. "Current alcohol abuse was more prevalent among men, whites and younger and unmarried individuals while lifetime rates were highest among middle-aged Americans." Alcohol abuse developed at an average age of 22.5, while dependence began at an average age of 21.9.

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