Characteristics+of+Alcoholism+In+Women

In the U.S. 60% of women who consume alcohol have at least one drink a year. Among that 60%, 13% have more than seven drinks per week, and in the U.S. an estimated 5.3 million women drink in some way that threatens their personal health, safety, and general well-being.

__How It Works:__

The genetics of a woman can determine how fast she can feel the effects of consuming alcohol, how the experience of drinking is for her, and how, over an extended period of time, drinking can affect a woman’s health. When deciding on how much and how often to drink, a woman will consider the following factors; “a family history of alcohol problems, a woman’s risk of illnesses such as heart disease and breast cancer, medications she is taking, and age.” (NIAA, 2008)

Women typically weigh less than men. In comparison pound for pound, men have more water in their bodies than women do, this means that a woman’s brain as well as her other organs are exposed to higher amounts of alcohol and to more toxic by-products that are the result of when the body breaks down and eliminates alcohol. “This is because alcohol passes through the digestive tract and is dispersed through water in the body.” (NIAA, 2008)

http://www.tressugar.com/Anti-Alcohol-PSA-Tells-Women-Alcoholism-Make-You-Look-Like-Man-1691637

"The Dietary Guidelines point out that drinking more than one drink per day for women can increase the risk for motor vehicle crashes, other injuries, high blood pressure, stroke, violence, suicide, and certain types of cancer." (NIAA, 2008)

It is often assumed that men suffer more problems from drinking alcohol than women, but the truth is that problems surrounding women that consume alcohol are equal to or even pass the number of problems men face. Statistics indicate that “female alcoholics have death rates 50 to 100 percent higher than those of male alcoholics, including deaths from suicides, alcohol-related accidents, heart disease and stroke, and liver cirrhosis.” (NIAA, 2008)

"Depression is closely linked to heavy drinking in women, and women who drink at home alone are more likely than others to have later drinking problems. Many studies have found that women who suffered childhood sexual abuse are more likely to have drinking problems." (NIAA, 2008)