The current paper is aimed to outline the peculiarities of alcohol addiction and the reasons of alcoholism. Moreover, it discusses what influences alcoholism the most: genetics or character. At the beginning of the paper, there is a short description of alcohol use during history. The paper shows the impact of alcohol on various spheres of life. In addition, the paper evaluates the affect of alcohol on contemporary society. It explains the consequences of careless use of alcohol. Moreover, it shows possible results of alcoholism on future generations. The paper explains the reasons why people get into alcohol addiction and how they can get rid of the harmful habit. You can buy dissertation conclusion similar to this article if you find it useful.
Alcohol has occupied an important place in society for centuries. Historically, alcohol is an indispensable element in many areas of life including medicine, manufacturing sector, food industry, and other numerous spheres. Since ancient times, the use of alcohol is an integral part of people's lives. This is an important ingredient of many drugs; it is des-infectious and antiseptic. Alcohol has always been present in all cultures. Moreover, the rudiments of dealing with alcohol emerged with the first appearance of alcoholic beverages. For example, in Egypt it was normal to punish those who abuse alcohol. It was believed that alcohol significantly reduces efficiency. Many cultures accepted alcohol as a treasure, and Chinese culture is not an exception. As stated by Hanson (1995):
A Chinese imperial edict of about 1,116 B.C. makes it clear that the use of alcohol in moderation was believed to be prescribed by heaven. Whether or not it was prescribed by heaven, it was clearly beneficial to the treasury.
However, people are facing the results of such treasure today. In the Middle ages, people used alcohol as the way to avoid stress and tension in difficult periods. For instance, during war, alcohol was especially popular among soldiers who looked for relief. According to Hanson (1995), “While alcohol has always been misused by a minority of drinkers, it has clearly proved to be beneficial to most”. However, it is not a secret that today society suffers from alcohol abuse.
Modern society continues to move ahead rapidly and acquires new forms of development. Nevertheless, the society has accumulated a number of problems and alcohol occupies one of the leading positions. It is difficult to say what had the biggest impact on strengthening the problems with alcohol use. Many people around the world suffer from alcoholism. According to Room (1997), “Throughout the thousands of years of human experience with alcoholic beverages, it has been recognized that drinking is a source of both pleasure and harm”. Regardless of race, profession, level of life, and age, people continue to experience alcohol dependence. Modern society is on the stage of development where many aspects contradict each other. Along with a variety of measures to prevent the use of alcohol, such as age limits and legitimate grounds, society encourages an increase in alcohol consumption. Advertisement dazzles with the presence of young people who have a good time thanks to the alcohol. Many companies show that alcohol makes life brighter and more interesting than sober life.
Today, the percentage of people who suffer from alcoholism due to genes is much smaller than the percentage of those who acquire this dependency due to external factors. In today's world, genes are far from the first place among the causes of alcoholism. Society independently encourages young people to drink alcohol. This behavior leads to a wide range of health problems among the young generation.
In addition to young people, middle-aged and older generations also suffer from alcohol dependence. The modern world is full of stress and aggression, and this, in turn, causes a lot of problems among many people. Environment encourages people to use alcohol as a way to relax and release the head from unwanted thoughts. Such way of relaxation often leads to dependence and causes a number of subsequent problems. Such dependence destroys families, careers, leads to accidents and makes people suffer from loneliness. In one aspect, genes pass the alcohol. Nevertheless, this problem occurs due to external irritants that cause the appearance of alcoholism.
Annually more than a hundred thousand people die because of alcohol consumption. More than forty percent of road accidents occur due to alcohol. Moreover, alcohol causes a number of diseases, which further lead to serious complications or even death. Van Nijen (2011) stated that:
Millions of people worldwide suffer from alcohol-related problems, including violent behavior attributed to alcohol consumption, alcohol induced cancers, such as, for example, breast, lip, throat and liver cancer, and more common than often thought, alcoholism, which is affecting many individuals and families alike.
Alcoholism causes a number of social problems and affects all members of society. Families, in which there is an alcoholic, are suffering from financial problems, violence, and misunderstanding. Children who grow up in such families feel insecure and are afraid to stay at home. Disorder in the family often leads to global problems, which eventually cause a divorce. Annually, alcohol dependence causes the increase in percentage of families who split up.
It is very difficult to explain the negative impact of alcohol to a person suffering from alcoholism. Alcohol disables thoughts and people rely only on their senses. They evaluate criticism and condemnation as irritants that hinder getting pseudo pleasure from alcohol. Society is trying to help people in the fight against alcoholism. It creates a huge number of Alcoholics Anonymous societies. However, people should realize the seriousness of the problem. Otherwise, the treatment will have no effect.
It is a fact that people consume more beer than milk, coffee, and soft drinks. Moreover, according to statistics, people who drink two bottles of beer daily are at risk of cancer, cardio-vascular diseases, and psychological disorders. Alcohol also leads to accidents on the road, at home, and in the workplace. According to Donaldson (2012), “In the short term, alcohol causes lethargy, confusion, vomiting, stupor, unconsciousness, and even low doses cause impaired memory, impaired reactions, impaired vision, and impaired judgment”.
There are hundreds of organizations worldwide which help people in fighting with alcoholism. Counseling is an important element in recovery of those who decided to ask for help in order to get rid of alcohol dependence. Support during the struggle with alcoholism is a very important part towards healthy consumption of alcohol. However, people never return to alcohol after they managed to get rid of alcohol addiction. When people realize that alcohol is destroying their lives, they fall into despair. It often happens that people are trying to deal with addiction on their own but fail. This happens because such people are vulnerable and require support from the counselor. The most basic role of the social worker is to make person understand that it is possible to fight with alcoholism regardless of its stage. Many people seek for help because they consider themselves powerless to fight the disease. A way to overcome the dependence is of the full complexity, but the role of the social worker is to encourage the alcoholic to overcome addiction. All problems of struggle with addiction are in the head and only breaking these obstacles can help to get rid of the addiction. Counselor becomes a guide to a healthy lifestyle. The role of counseling is to help a person evaluate benefits and costs of drinking. According to Donaldson (2012), “Any benefit from alcohol is only gained from small doses (less than two glasses per day), and the same benefits can be obtained from a number of other methods, such as exercise, nutrition, and confidence”. It is essential to show that life without alcohol dependence is much better than drinking another pack of beer. It is not easy to deny alcohol that is why a counselor helps an alcoholic to set goals and create a plan of how to get rid of the addiction. What is more, in most serious stages of alcoholism, a person needs help during the recovery stage. When organism suddenly feels the lack of alcohol, it feels stressed. Moreover, in some cases, a period of recovery can even be life-threatening. Nevertheless, the role of a counselor is to control the period of recovery and help a person fight with a desire to take another bottle of alcohol.
What is more, a counselor helps a person adjust to a new way of life. A counseling organization shows people a new meaning of life and helps in avoiding of triggers and cravings. Support also means help in building relations with those who suffered from thoughtless actions of alcoholic. Recovery from alcohol addiction means adaptation to a new social life. It is not a secret that alcohol abuse causes various social issues and destroys relations between people. Not only families suffer from alcohol dependence but colleagues, friends, and simple bystanders. A counselor gives a new life to alcoholics and opens the gates to the world without alcohol.
Negative effects of alcohol on human lives are undeniable. The modern world is actively combating alcoholism in order to maintain a healthy environment for future generations. If society does not pay enough attention to alcohol addiction, then the world will suffer from a wide range of serious problems for a long time. This battle against alcohol abuse is caused by a variety of factors, which can be destructive for future generations. Everything affects future generations greatly. That is the reason why society should pay attention to the problem of alcohol addiction. It is not hard to predict what will happen if society decides to put away the issue of alcoholism.
Every big problem starts from a chain of little issues, which cause discomfort. When it comes to alcohol abuse, the problem stems from the individual and his surrounding world. There are different reasons why people get into alcohol addiction. Nevertheless, all of them result in one aim – avoidance of negative thoughts. According to Nordqvist (2009), “Alcohol may undermine a person's judgment; it can lower inhibitions and alter the drinker's thoughts, emotions and general behavior”. People tend to think that alcohol makes the world better, and there is no need to think about problems. Instead of solving problems that cause stress and irritation, people choose to distract themselves from these problems with alcohol. However, everything gets back to reality after a person becomes sober. As a result, a person wants to stay away from his/her problems as long as it is possible and it leads to drinking alcohol. A person gets into alcohol addiction in that way. According to Nordqvist (2009), “Alcohol dependence is a gradual process which can take from a few years to several decades to become a problem - with some very vulnerable people addiction can come in a question of months”. It is scientifically proven that alcohol causes a variety of health problems. If society does not change people’s attitude towards alcohol, then future generations will suffer not only from a weak immune system but also from severe incurable diseases. There will be a great number of newborns with defects and serious health problems. People will suffer from mental disorders and the whole society will be dependent on alcohol. As a result, society’s inaction in response to the problem of alcoholism will lead to degradation. People will reduce their mental activity, work capacity, and ability to procreate a healthy generation. As a result, mortality will increase; society will rapidly degrade and will die slowly but steadily. It is a harmful problem for the whole society, which endangers all its participants. It influences all levels of society.
Contemporary society has enough problems to solve. According to Clinebell (1990), “On the contrary, the research findings indicate forcefully that alcoholism is a complex disease in which a variety of factors play a role”. It is obvious that all problems have a direct connection and it is essential to pay attention to all of them. However, alcoholism takes one of the leading places, which affects human life the most. It is a fact that people cannot deny the use of alcohol. Moreover, the lack of alcohol will lead to the disappearance of many essential spheres of life. The problem of the present is that people can hardly control their consumption ability. The use of common things turns into abuse and leads to various problems. Alcoholism is a result not only of over consumerism but also of society’s careless attitude towards it. People should review their attitude towards alcohol. Counseling organizations exist to help people fight with alcohol addiction and prevent them from getting into trouble again. Society should evaluate its problems and learn how to get rid of them. In most cases, people are the ones who create these problems. It is essential to outline the reasons of alcohol addiction and help people in the battle for health. Society should always pay attention to the problems of individuals as they lead to the global problems of the society in general.
References
Clinebell, H. J. (1990). Understanding and counseling the alcoholic. Nashville: Abingdon Press.
Donaldson, B. (2012, Mar 17). The future of alcohol. Baha’i Coherence. Retrieved from http://bahaicoherence.blogspot.com/2012/03/future-of-alcohol.html
Hanson, David J. (1995). Preventing alcohol abuse: Alcohol, culture and control. Westport, CT: Praeger.
Nordqvist, C. (2009, Jul 10). What is an alcoholic? What is alcoholism? Medical News Today. Retrieved from http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/157163.php
Room, R. (1997). Alcohol, the individual and society: What history teaches us. Retrieved from http://www.robinroom.net/alcoindi.htm
Van Nijen, R. H. (2011, Oct 13). Alcohol problems in modern society. Ezine Articles. Retrieved from http://ezinearticles.com/?Alcohol-Problems-in-Modern-Society&id=6624374
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