In the USA, no other substance (in comparison with alcohol) has caused nearly the amount of deaths, chaos, crime, and pain; and to make matters much worse, alcohol is almost completely ignored as a poison, or even as a drug.
The most devastating effect of alcohol is its addictiveness. In 1992, an estimated 27 ½ million people were addicted to alcohol. This ended up costing the affected, their families, and taxpayers over $148 billion (NIAAA). Besides the costs, alcoholism has ruined the lives of millions. The number one cause of child abuse always has, and always will be alcoholism. A study found that the number of abused and neglected children had more than doubled from 1986 to 1997 to 3 million. A rise more than eight times that of the rise of the population of children (Elrod). 915 child welfare professionals were surveyed, and 90% said that alcohol alone is the main cause of child abuse and neglect (Elrod).
We can also thank alcohol and the alcohol industry for over 110,000 deaths in 1996. Deaths from cirrhosis of the liver, drink driving, alcohol induced fights and accidents, and cancer just to name a few (NIAAA). Over 300 people die every day in America of something alcohol related. But how does the average American look at alcohol? Most people will say that it is a “safe” and “social” activity. Unless you consider 110,000 deaths “safe” and unless you consider rape and assault as being “social” then these are simply misnomers created largely by the alcohol industry.
Most Americans are unfortunately unaware that alcohol is the most common and widely used date rape drug. A study of the urine samples of 578 rape victims showed that 36% of them had alcohol in their system. Less than 1%, 5 victims, showed evidence of the “date rape drug” Rohypnol (ElSohly). In more than half the cases, the man was drunk.
Alcohol has also had a phenomenal impact on the crime world. A study by the British Medical Association showed that alcohol was present in 64% of all public offences and 40% of all violent assaults. Alcohol was also present in 60-70% of homicides, 75% of stabbings, 70% of beatings, and 50% fights (IAS). How can one look at that and say that alcohol is safe and social? It is obvious that people are not responsible with their drinking, and are bringing it onto the people around them. Alcohol remains one of the main cause of crime.
The way I look at a person who supports alcohol and buys alcohol, is a person that supports rape, child abuse and violence. You cannot say that you are against these issues while at the same time supporting them. If you were truly against these issues then you would not be supporting the number one cause of it. Every year the alcohol industry makes 100’s of billions of dollars that go right back out into society to keep killing and ruining lives.
The social cost of alcohol in Australia in 1998/99 was estimated at $7.5 billion (Counting the cost: estimates of the social costs of drug abuse in Australia in 1998-9 Collins, D and Lapsley, H, Commonwealth of Australia, 2002).
This includes costs associated with:
§ health and medical services - $225 million net cost
§ road accidents - $1.8 billion
§ lost productivity in the workplace - $1.9 billion
§ alcohol related crime - $1.2 billion
Approximately $3.9 billion of these costs or 62.1 percent were estimated by the authors to be potentially preventable and amenable to public policy initiatives (allowing time for such interventions to be effective).
Preliminary estimates indicate that the NSW Government spends almost $1 billion annually on drug and alcohol services and dealing with associated problems in the community (including some tobacco associated costs).
Various recent studies show:
§ Around 3,300 deaths per annum in Australia are attributed to alcohol use, second only to tobacco as a preventable cause of death and hospitalisation.
§ More than 72,000 hospital admissions per annum in Australia are estimated to be caused by high-risk drinking.
§ Main alcohol-related causes of death and hospitalisation are cirrhosis of the liver, cancers, stroke, falls and motor vehicle accidents.
§ Regular consumption of large quantities of alcohol by pregnant women, may be associated with a variety of adverse foetal consequences, including congenital abnormalities and foetal alcohol syndrome (foetal alcohol syndrome includes physical abnormalities, slow growth and neurological dysfunction).
§ One third of all driver and pedestrian deaths are alcohol related.
§ 12 percent of suicides, 16 percent of child abuse cases, 44 percent of fire injuries, 34 percent of falls and drowning, are associated with alcohol consumption.
§ Alcohol and drugs contribute to between 3 and 11 percent of workplace injuries and fatalities. Alcohol is also implicated in impaired work performance and productivity, and absenteeism.
§ Between 41 and 70 percent of violent crimes are committed under the influence of alcohol; in NSW alcohol was estimated to be prevalent in 42 percent of homicide incidents (although the exact role of alcohol in homicide is under debate).
§ Prisoners and offenders, prior to incarceration, show higher levels of alcohol consumption than the general population, with between 32 percent and 50 percent of offenders classified as alcohol dependent or heavy users.
§ Rates of deaths that can be wholly attributed to excessive use of alcohol are higher in non-metropolitan areas.
§ About 5-10 percent of the population drink amounts that are considered harmful or hazardous.
§ There are clear gender differences in patterns of consumption (e.g. men usually drink at an earlier age and generally drink more than women with consequent shorter life expectancy rates).
§ Women are more vulnerable to both the acute and chronic effects of alcohol misuse.
§ Misuse of alcohol is a particular concern to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (ATSI) communities. Research has shown that although the proportion of ATSI people who drink is smaller than in the general population, those who drink tend to consume higher quantities – 68 percent of Aboriginal people consume alcohol at harmful levels compared to around 10 percent of drinkers in the general population.
Organisational records of the NSW Police indicate that an estimated 70 percent of incidents attended by police each year are alcohol related.
Other research indicates that almost 80 percent of domestic violence and street incidents (assaults, offensive behaviour or conduct, malicious damage and noise complaints) are alcohol related.
Alcohol reduces the size of testicles overtime. It also reduces the sperm count and increases the size of mammary glands in males, and hence his chest takes shape of a woman’s breasts over a period of time.
With hangover (even when the blood alcohol level is zero) a person cannot properly concentrate and is prone to a major error (e.g. if driving). The hangover sometimes takes many hours to clear. Alcohol acts as a diuretic and thus takes more water out of the body and therefore dehydrates a person.
Alcoholism, also known as alcohol dependence, is a disease that includes the following four symptoms:
Craving--A strong need, or urge, to drink.
Loss of control--Not being able to stop drinking once drinking has begun.
Physical dependence--Withdrawal symptoms, such as nausea, sweating, shakiness, and anxiety after stopping drinking.
Tolerance--The need to drink greater amounts of alcohol to get "high."
Yes, alcoholism is a disease. The craving that an alcoholic feels for alcohol can be as strong as the need for food or water. An alcoholic will continue to drink despite serious family, health, or legal problems.
Like many other diseases, alcoholism is chronic, meaning that it lasts a person's lifetime; it usually follows a predictable course; and it has symptoms. The risk for developing alcoholism is influenced both by a person's genes and by his or her lifestyle. (See also "Publications," Alcohol Alert No. 30: Diagnostic Criteria for Alcohol Abuse and Dependence.)
There are several scientific reasons for the prohibition of consumption of intoxicants i.e. alcohol. The maximum number of deaths in the world related to any one particular cause is due to the consumption of alcohol. Millions of people die every year only because of intake of alcohol. I need not go into the details of all the ill-effects of alcohol since most of them are commonly known. Below is a simple list of few of the alcohol related illnesses:
1. Cirrhosis of Liver is the most well known alcohol associated disease.
2. Others are Cancer of Oesophagus, Cancer of Head and Neck, Cancer of Liver (Hepatoma), Cancer of Bowel, etc.
3. Oesophagitis, Gastritis, Pancreatitis and Hepatitis are linked with alcohol consumption.
4. Cardiomyopathy, Hypertension, Coronary Artherosclerosis, Angina and Heart Attacks are linked with heavy alcohol intakes.
5. Strokes, Apoplexy, Fits and different types of Paralysis are linked with alcohol intake.
6. Peripheral Neuropathy, Cortical Atrophy, Cerebellar Atrophy are well-known syndromes caused by alcohol consumption.
7. Wernicke – Korsakoff syndrome with amnesia of recent events, confabulations and retainment of memory to old events with different types of paralysis are mainly due to thiamine deficiency due to excessive alcohol intake.
8. Beriberi and other deficiencies are not uncommon among alcoholics. Even Pellagra occurs in alcoholics.
9. Delerium Tremens is a serious complication that may occur during recurrent infection of alcoholics or post operatively. It also occurs during abstention as a sign of withdrawal effect. It is quite serious and may cause death even if treated in well equipped centres.
10. Numerous Endocrine Disorders have been associated with alcoholism ranging from Myxodema to Hyperthyroidism and Florid Cushing Syndrome.
11. Hematological ill effects are long and variable. Folic acid deficiency, however, is the most common manifestation of alcoholic abuse resulting in Macrocytic Anemia. Zeive’s syndrome is a triad of Hemolytic Anemia, Jaundice and Hyperlipaedemia that follows alcoholic binges.
12. Thrombocytopenia and other platelet abnormalities are not rare in alcoholics.
13. The commonly used tablet metronidazole (flagyl) interacts badly with alcohol.
14. Recurrent infection is very common among chronic alcoholics. The resistance to disease and the immunological defense system are compromised by alcohol intake.
15. Chest infections are notorious in alcoholics. Pneumonia, Lung Abcess, Emphysema and Pulmonary Tuberculosis are all common in alcoholics.
16. During acute alcoholic intoxication, the drunk person usually vomits, the cough reflexes which are protective are paralysed. The vomitus thus easily pass to the lung causing Pneumonia or Lung Abscess. Occasionally it may even cause suffocation and death.
17. The ill effects of alcohol consumption on women deserves special mention. Females are more vulnerable to alcohol-related Cirrhosis than men. During pregnancy alcohol consumption has a severe detrimental effect on the foetus. Foetal Alcohol Syndrome is being recognised more and more in the medical profession.
18. Skin diseases are also related to alcohol indulgence.
19. Eczema, Alopecia, Nail Dystrophy, Paronychia (infection around the nails) and Angular Stomatitis (inflammation of the angle of the mouth) are common diseases among alcoholics.
Alcoholism is a ‘disease’ Medical doctors have now turned liberal towards alcoholics and call alcoholism a disease rather than an addiction.
The Islamic Research Foundation has published a pamphlet that says:
If alcohol is a disease, it is the only disease that:
- Is sold in bottles
- Is advertised in newspapers, magazines, on radio and television
- Has licensed outlets to spread it
- Produces revenue for the government
- Brings violent deaths on the highways
- Destroys family life and increases crime
- Has no germs or viral cause
How can we stop this epidemic of poison? Simple. For one, stop drinking alcohol. It’s easy to do it if you are not addicted. Secondly, educate people about alcohol; show alcohol for what it really is. People today are blind from the truth about alcohol. Stop supporting an industry that kills thousands of people. You wouldn’t pay an assassin to kill people you don’t know, don’t pay a multi-billion dollar industry to do it either. Educate people about what alcohol really is. The alcohol industry refuses to take the responsibility of informing people about the gross amounts of death and violence that they are responsible for. They love the fact that people think that alcohol is a fun and social activity that makes you more attractive. Make yourself better than the industry of death. Don’t swallow the garbage they try to shove down your throat. Educate yourself and others about alcohol. Also, if you know someone who is an alcoholic, don’t be afraid to help him or her. Giving up alcohol could save their life.
If you are a person who is against rape, violence, disease, and crime, then I urge you to not support the number one cause of it. When you throw money down on the counter of a liquor store, that money could very well be the money that produces the alcohol responsible for another person’s death. I would be devastated if I paid money to kill someone.
