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Alcohol Use and Alcohol Related Risk Behaviors Among Veterans 

The NSDUH Report: Alcohol Use and Alcohol Related Risk Behaviors among Veterans

Highlights:

  • Data from SAMHSA's National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) were used to compare substance use, dependence and treatment among veterans and non veterans. Veterans were defined as persons who had formerly served in any of the U.S. Armed Forces (Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, etc.). The nonveteran comparison group reflected the age, gender, and geographic distribution of veterans as indicated in the Veterans Health Administrations's benefit eligibility data. In 2003, of the estimated 25 million veterans (93% were male) living in the United States, 8.4% were between the ages of 17 and 34; 30.1% between the ages of 35 and 54; 42.3% between the ages of 55 and 74; and 19.2% were aged 75 or older.
  • SAMHSA's National Survey on Drug Use and Health found that in 2003, an estimated 56.6% of veterans used alcohol in the past month compared with 50.8% of comparable nonveterans.
  • An estimated 13.2% of veterans reported driving while under the influence of alcohol or illicit drugs in the past year compared with 12.2% of comparable nonveterans.
  • An estimated 18.8% of veterans reported that they smoked cigarettes daily in the past month compared with 14.3% of comparable nonveterans.

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This Short Report, The NSDUH Report: Alcohol Use and Alcohol Related Risk Behaviors among Veterans, isbased on SAMHSA's  National Survey on Drug Use and Health conducted by the Office of Applied Studies (OAS) in the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).  SAMHSA's National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) is the primary source of information on the prevalence, patterns, and consequences of drug and alcohol use and abuse and for selected mental health measures in the general U.S. civilian non institutionalized population, age 12 and older.   SAMHSA's National Survey on Drug Use & Health also provides estimates for drug use and for selected mental health measures by State.

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This page was last updated on July 27, 2006.

SAMHSA, an agency in the Department of Health and Human Services, is the Federal Government's lead agency for improving the quality and availability of substance abuse prevention, addiction treatment, and mental health services in the United States.

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