Alcohol consumption can have negative social and economic consequences for the drinker, the drinker’s immediate surroundings, and society. Individuals other than the drinker can be influenced by road accidents or violence.
Alcohol is the world’s number one risk factor for ill-health and premature death among people aged 25 to 59, who make up most of the working-age population. As a result, it is predictable that lost productivity costs dominate social cost analyses originating from the harm caused by alcohol.
Alcohol use and Work
Workplace alcoholism can be tremendously costly to an organization. Drinking not only raises the likelihood of an employee being hurt but can also lead to an increase in on-the-job accidents. Additionally, alcohol might impair an employee’s concentration and coordination at work. It lowers productivity, which affects corporate goals and objectives.
It has both short- and long-term consequences for an employee. Here are some of the issues that can occur as a result of employee alcohol consumption:
- sleeping while working
- Being late or failing to appear
- Poor decision making
- Confrontational conduct with coworkers and managers
- Intentional or unintentional harm to oneself or others
Alcohol use and Family
When a family member struggles with alcoholism, it not only affects their well-being but may also have a significant influence on their family. Living with alcohol misuse or dependency can hurt spouses, children, and other family members.
They may face financial difficulties, damaged relationships, and injury to their health and well-being. In a nutshell, the effects of alcoholism on family are just drastic and heartbreaking!
Impact on Children
Alcoholism in the home can have a significant impact on children. They may feel guilty if they believe they are to blame for their drinking and that it will not stop. They may also become confused and upset as they try to understand why someone they care about behaves in this manner.
Because alcoholism disrupts routines, a kid may miss out on consistent mealtimes or bedtimes or be required to take on additional tasks to maintain a regular in the household. Their moods and behaviors can also become unpredictable, making it difficult to establish friends and fearful of coming to school.
Children of alcoholics develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), suffer from mental health trauma, and develop a substance abuse issue themselves. Domestic violence can be exacerbated by alcohol and rage, which can have long-term consequences for the child.
Impact on Spouses
Similarly, living with an alcoholic spouse brings a new set of painful challenges. People who have a life partner suffering from an alcohol use problem may be concerned for their safety, future, or family.
When they become addicted to alcohol, their concentration can shift to the point where they neglect their employment to drink or deal with the consequences of drinking. A spouse or partner may have to deal with the consequences of a loss of income or less money in the household. It may also be required to take on more obligations in terms of family and house.
When drinking or attempting to obtain alcohol, an alcoholic may also place themselves or others in unsafe or risky circumstances, tiring and harmful for those who care about them.
Alcohol use and Poverty
When it comes to alcohol misuse, there is no ignoring the financial consequences. If you’re not careful, alcoholism can lead to a disastrous downward spiral. Individuals who are addicted to alcohol have poor money management skills.
As a result, being unable to manage your money effectively can lead to severe despair and stress. With this in mind, high levels of despair and stress lead persons with drinking issues to use alcohol to self-medicate
Binge drinking has a self-fulfilling dynamic due to the desire to escape the mental melancholy and anxiety that most alcoholics suffer. In other words, the more you give in to your addiction, the more money you lose, which encourages you to drink more. People who struggle with alcoholism take money from their homes; as a result, your family suffers the most as a result of your activities.
Alcohol use and Violence
Alcohol may promote aggression or violence by interfering with normal brain function. Alcohol, for example, inhibits brain processes that typically limit impulsive behaviors, including inappropriate violence.
Alcohol, due to altering information processing, can also cause a person to misread social cues, causing them to overreact to a perceived threat. Simultaneously, a focus narrowing may result in an incorrect evaluation of the future hazards of acting on an immediate aggressive inclination.
Studies show a persistent and strong link between alcohol use and intimate partner violence, defined as any physical, sexual, or psychological aggression towards a current or past partner.
Alcohol use and Traffic Fatalities
Increased self-injury, hostility toward others, violent crimes, child abuse, spouse abuse, and road deaths are only a few of the most dangerous societal repercussions of alcoholism. Driving drinking alcohol always results in car accidents, which frequently result in property damage and traffic fatalities.
When most people think of the biological implications of heavy drinking, they usually imagine a person with a damaged liver or an impaired brain after years of drinking. However, much of the damage of heavy drinking happens when the individual is drinking or inebriated. Serious bodily harm caused by alcohol usage can affect individuals and those around them.
Every year, around 5.2 million people die due to alcohol-related injuries globally; alcohol is responsible for 3.2 percent of all deaths. Globally, the poorest countries account for 90 percent of all alcohol-related fatalities. Alcohol-related harm is the third greatest cause of preventable death in the United States.
What are the social factors of alcoholism?
Alcoholism does not appear anywhere. There are events in a person’s life that might have a big impact on whether or not they drink and how much they drink. Risk factors for alcohol misuse include mental health conditions, trauma, affiliation with deviant peers, and alcohol-abusing parents.
What are the effects of alcoholism on the family?
Alcohol produces more than only problems for the individual drinking it, especially when abused and used over an extended period. Because addiction can have a detrimental impact on many aspects of a person’s life, it is common for alcoholism to impact family and friends.
How does alcoholism affect families?
Children of alcoholic addicts are more likely to develop cognitive, behavioral, and emotional issues. Unfortunately, parents battling alcoholism are frequently neglectful of their children’s physical and emotional needs. It causes major developmental difficulties for the children.
What are the economic effects of drunk driving?
If a drunk driver causes a crash that injures or kills other persons, they must face the penalty. That emotional toll might be far worse than any physical suffering.
However, the physical dangers of intoxicated driving are enormous. Impaired driving can result in paralysis, deformity, brain damage, and even death. Driving when you are drunk is also illegal. Drunk drivers frequently face large fines, loss of license, and increased insurance costs.
How much does America spend on alcohol each year?
Alcohol consumption in the United States was about a quarter trillion dollars. Effective community-based treatments can help to prevent excessive drinking and its associated costs.
Alcoholism presents risks, such as becoming involved in crime, drinking, driving, or sexually irresponsible! The real-world consequences of alcohol misuse go far beyond financial expenditures.
The alcohol addicts risk their own lives, but their loved ones also get affected, especially one of the partners is addicted. There is also a broader influence on the neighborhood, schools, workplace, healthcare system, and society. CWP
Community Watch Paper posts:
How Excessive Drinking of Alcohol Leads to Crime
Drunk Drivers In Your Neighborhood