1 in 5 men at risk of alcohol disorder in developed nations
POSTED January 26, 2009 - 11:21 | POSTED BY Clarence V
Last edited by Shikha Patial on January 26, 2009 - 12:48
California, United States, January 26: According to researchers from the University of California in San Diego, United States, one in 5 men are at risk of developing a drinking problem or getting hooked to alcohol in their lifetimes.
However, for females the risk of becoming dependent on alcohol was estimated between eight to 10 percent.
Study author, Dr. Marc Schuckit of the Veterans Affairs San Diego Healthcare System and the University of California at San Diego, said that the alcohol dependency problem was quite common in all developed nations, where nearly 80 percent of male and 60 percent of females drink at some time during their lives.
However, he also cautioned that in developing nations, the rates of the disorder are ‘lower, but still substantial.’
A recent study showed that millions of middle class people in Britain were spending more time at home with a bottle of wine thus putting themselves at health risks.
Official guidelines advised that men should not have more than 3 to 4 servings of alcohol, while females should not have more than two to three servings.
The results of the study will help health care professionals on how to determine and treat the patients for alcohol dependence disorder, which includes a range of problem drinking behaviors; as spending too much time drinking, having trouble stopping once started and ignoring important life events to drink or recover from a binge drinking etc.
Dr. Schuckit said that despite the belief, problem of alcohol dependency could be treated quite successfully. He added, "Despite perceptions to the contrary, efforts to help patients decrease heavy drinking commonly result in changes in behaviours, and most patients with alcohol-use disorders do well after treatment.”
Drinking in large amount can perk up the chances of heart disease and cancerdefine such as head and neck cancers, even among non smokers, Dr Schuckit said.
The findings were published online on Monday by the British health journal The Lancet.
