Alcoholism
Alcoholism is an addictive dependency on alcohol characterised by craving (a strong need to drink); loss of control (being unable to stop); physical dependence and withdrawal symptoms; and tolerance (increasing difficulty of becoming drunk).
 engraving (detail) circa 1820 |
Alcoholism is often seen as a 'disease of affluence', being uncommon among indigenous people until they become 'civilised'. Alcoholism is a life-threatening problem that often ends in death, particularly through liver disease, internal bleeding, alcohol poisoning, accidents and suicide.
Stereotypes of alcoholics are often found in fiction and popular culture, viz. the "town drunk", or the portrayal of Russians and the Irish as alcoholics.
Alcohol dependence can be harder to break and significantly more damaging than dependence on most other addictive substances. The physical symptoms when withdrawing from alcohol are seen to be equal to those experienced during withdrawal from heroin.
| Table of contents |
|
2 Social Impact 3 Pharmacology 4 Related articles |
Treatments
Treatments for alcoholism include detoxification programs run by
medical institutions. These may involve stays of a number of weeks
in specialized hospital wards where drugs may be used to avoid withdrawal symptoms.
After detoxification, various forms of group therapy or psychotherapy can be used to deal with underlying psychological issues leading to alcohol dependence. Aversion therapies may be supported by drugs like Disulfiram, which causes a strong and prompt hangover whenever alcohol is consumed.
Another treatment program is based on nutritional therapy. Many alcoholics have insulin resistance syndrome, a metabolic disorder where the bodies' difficulty in processing sugars causes an unsteady supply to the blood stream. While the disorder can be treated by a hypoglycemic diet, this can affect behaviour and emotions, side-effects often seen among alcoholics in treatment. The metabolic aspects of alcoholism are often overlooked, resulting in poor treatment outcomes. See: [1]
In the 1900's the self-help group-counselling approach to treatment became increasingly successful and remains so today, with Alcoholics Anonymous possibly being the best-known example of this movement.
Many people incorrectly assume that once an alcoholic stops drinking, all is well. However, many people who have stopped drinking still refer to themselves as "alcoholics" or "recovering alcoholics."
Organisations working with alcoholics include:
Social Impact
The social problems arising from alcoholism can include loss of employment, financial problems, convictions for crimes such as drunk driving or public disorder, loss of accommodation, and loss of respect from others who may see the problem as self-inflicted and easily avoided. Exhaustive studies, including those by author Wayne Kritsberg, show that alcoholism affects not only the addicted but can profoundly impact the family members around them. Children of alcoholics can be affected even after they are grown. This condition is usually referred to as The Adult Children of Alcoholics Syndrome. ALANON, a group modelled after Alcoholics Anonymous, offers aid to friends and family members of alcoholics.Pharmacology
Pharmacological agents used in treatment of alcoholism include anxiolytics such as benzodiazpine to treat symptoms of acute withdrawal, Disulfiram and Naltrexone to improve compliance with abstinance planning and the standard pharmocopeia of anti-depressants, anxiolytics and other psychotropic drugs to treat underlying mood disorders, neuroses and psychoses associated with alcoholic symptoms.