Alcoholism (Print Version)

Also called: Also called: Alcohol dependence

For most adults, moderate alcohol use is not harmful. However, nearly 17.6 million adults in the United States are alcoholics or have alcohol problems. Alcoholism is a disease with four main features:

Craving - a strong need to drink
Loss of control - not being able to stop drinking once you've begun
Physical dependence – withdrawal symptoms, such as nausea, sweating or shakiness after stopping drinking
Tolerance - the need to drink greater amounts of alcohol in order to get “high”

Alcoholism carries many serious dangers. Heavy drinking can increase the risk of certain cancers. It can cause damage to the liver, brain and other organs. It can cause birth defects. It increases the risk of death from car crashes and other injuries as well as the risk of homicide and suicide.

National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism

Start Here

FAQ' s on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism(National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism) - http://www.niaaa.nih.gov/FAQs/General-English/
JAMA Patient Page: Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism(American Medical Association) - Links to PDF - http://jama.ama-assn.org/cgi/reprint/295/17/2100.pdf
Also available in Spanish http://jama.ama-assn.org/cgi/data/295/17/2100/DC1/1

Overviews

Alcoholism(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) - http://www.mayoclinic.com/print/alcoholism/DS00340/METHOD=print&DSECTION=all
Faces of Change: Do I Have a Problem with Alcohol or Drugs?(Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) - Large PDF file - http://www.kap.samhsa.gov/products/brochures/pdfs/TIP35.pdf

Latest News

Methanol Poisoning Damage Is Likely Permanent(04/02/2009, Reuters Health) - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_82498.html
Public Housing for Homeless Alcoholics Saves Money(03/31/2009, HealthDay) - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_82368.html
'Good Feelings' from Alcohol Only Come with Fewer Drinks(03/19/2009, HealthDay) - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_81945.html
More News on Alcoholism http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/alphanews_a.html#alcoholism

Treatment

Alcohol and Drug Treatment: How It Works, and How It Can Help You(Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) - Links to PDF - http://www.kap.samhsa.gov/products/brochures/pdfs/CJA_ConsumerBrochure.pdf
Also available in Spanish http://www.kap.samhsa.gov/mli/docs/spanish/alcohol_drug_tx_spanish.pdf
Co-Occurring Disorders: Integrated Dual Disorders Treatment(Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) - http://mentalhealth.samhsa.gov/cmhs/communitysupport/toolkits/cooccurring/consumers.asp
Also available in Spanish http://mentalhealth.samhsa.gov/cmhs/communitysupport/toolkits/cooccurring/espanol1.asp
Quick Guide to Finding Effective Alcohol and Drug Addiction Treatment(Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) - http://csat.samhsa.gov/faqs.aspx
Understanding Alcohol Use Disorders and Their Treatment(American Psychological Association) - http://apahelpcenter.org/articles/article.php?id=45
Also available in Spanish http://www.centrodeapoyoapa.org/articulos/articulo.php?id=45
What Is Substance Abuse Treatment? A Booklet for Families(Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) - Large PDF file - http://www.kap.samhsa.gov/products/brochures/pdfs/WhatIsTx.pdf
Also available in Spanish http://kap.samhsa.gov/mli/docs/spanish/WhatIsTx-Spanish.pdf

Coping

If Someone Close...Has a Problem with Alcohol or Other Drugs(National Clearinghouse for Alcohol and Drug Information) - http://ncadi.samhsa.gov/govpubs/ph317/

Specific Conditions

Alcohol Withdrawal Syndrome(American Academy of Family Physicians) - http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/common/addictions/alcohol/007.printerview.html
Also available in Spanish http://familydoctor.org/online/famdoces/home/common/addictions/alcohol/007.printerview.html
Workplace Substance Abuse(Occupational Safety and Health Administration) - http://www.osha.gov/SLTC/substanceabuse/index.html

Related Issues

Alcohol Induced Liver Disease(American Liver Foundation) - http://www.liverfoundation.org/education/info/alcohol/
Alcohol Poisoning(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) - http://www.mayoclinic.com/print/alcohol-poisoning/DS00861/DSECTION=all&METHOD=print
Characteristics of Adult Children of Alcoholics(Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) - Links to PDF - http://captus.samhsa.gov/central/documents/4AdultChildrenofAlcoholics.pdf
PTSD and Problems with Alcohol Use(National Center for PTSD, Dept. of Veterans Affairs) - http://ncptsd.va.gov/ncmain/ncdocs/fact_shts/fs_alcohol.html
Wernicke-Korsakoff Syndrome(National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke) - Short Summary - http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/wernicke_korsakoff/wernicke-korsakoff.htm
What People Recovering from Alcoholism Need to Know about Osteoporosis(National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases) - http://www.niams.nih.gov/Health_Info/bone/Osteoporosis/Conditions_Behaviors/default.asp

Health Check Tools

Alcohol-Online Tests(Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) - http://www.atgetfit.net/alcohol/tests/default.aspx
Alcohol-Use Quiz: Drinking Too Much Carries High Costs(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) - http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/alcohol/QZ00049/METHOD=print

Clinical Trials

ClinicalTrials.gov: Alcoholism(National Institutes of Health) - http://clinicaltrials.gov/search/open/condition=%22Alcoholism%22
ClinicalTrials.gov: Substance-Related Disorders(National Institutes of Health) - http://clinicaltrials.gov/search/open/condition=%22Substance-Related+Disorders%22

Genetics

Family History of Alcoholism: Are You at Risk?(National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism) - http://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/FamilyHistory/famhist.htm
Also available in Spanish http://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/FamilySpanish/famhistspan.htm

Research

Alcohol Abuse Makes Prescription Drug Abuse More Likely(National Institute on Drug Abuse) - http://www.drugabuse.gov/NIDA_notes/NNvol21N5/alcohol.html
Alcohol Alerts(National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism) - http://www.niaaa.nih.gov/Publications/AlcoholAlerts/
Alcohol Dependence (Alcoholism)(National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism) - Links to PDF - http://www.nih.gov/about/researchresultsforthepublic/AlcoholDependenceAlcoholism.pdf
Electroacupuncture May Help Alcohol Addiction(National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine) - http://nccam.nih.gov/research/results/spotlight/022609.htm
Researchers Identify Alcoholism Subtypes(National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism) - http://www.niaaa.nih.gov/NewsEvents/NewsReleases/alcoholism_subtypes.htm

Journal Articles

References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

Article: Findings on alcohol dependence point to promising avenues for targeted... - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=19383946&tool=MedlinePlus
Article: Britain grappling with dementia prevalence. - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=19364775&tool=MedlinePlus
Article: Health care and public service use and costs before and... - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=19336710&tool=MedlinePlus
Alcoholism -- see more articles - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=search&db=pubmed&term=alcoholism[majr]+AND+humans[mh]+AND+english[la]+AND+(review[pt]+OR+guideline[pt]+OR+clinical+trial[pt]+OR+jsubsetk[text]+OR+jsubsetaim[text]+OR+jsubsetn[text]+OR+patient+education+handout[pt])+NOT+(letter[pt]+OR+editorial[pt]+OR+case+reports[pt])&doptcmdl=summary&cmd_current=Limits&pmfilter_EDatLimit=last+1+Year&tool=MedlinePlus

Directories

Getting Help(National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism) - http://www.collegedrinkingprevention.gov/links/help.aspx
Single-State Agency (SSA) Directory(Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) - Large PDF file - http://www.samhsa.gov/Grants/ssadirectory.pdf
Substance Abuse Treatment Facility Locator(Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) - http://dasis3.samhsa.gov/

Organizations

Al-Anon/Alateen(Alateen, Al-Anon) - http://www.al-anon.alateen.org/
Also available in Spanish http://www.al-anon.alateen.org/alaspan.html
Alcoholics Anonymous - http://www.alcoholics-anonymous.org/
Also available in Spanish http://www.aa.org/sp_index.cfm?Media=PlayFlash
National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence - http://www.ncadd.org/
National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism - http://www.niaaa.nih.gov/

Law and Policy

Are You in Recovery from Alcohol or Drug Problems? Know Your Rights(Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) - Large PDF file - http://www.pfr.samhsa.gov/docs/know_your_rights_01.pdf

Statistics

Alcohol Treatment: Need, Utilization, and Barriers(Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) - http://oas.samhsa.gov/2k9/AlcTX/AlcTX.htm
Alcohol Treatment: Need, Utilization, and Barriers(Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) - http://www.oas.samhsa.gov/2k9/AlcTX/AlcTX.htm
Americans Believe in Prevention and Recovery from Addictions(Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) - Links to PDF - http://www.samhsa.gov/Attitudes/CARAVAN_Factsheet.pdf
FastStats: Alcohol Use(National Center for Health Statistics) - http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/alcohol.htm
Frequency of Use among Alcohol-Only Treatment Admissions: 2006(Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) - http://www.oas.samhsa.gov/2k8/alcTX/alcTX.htm
General Information on Alcohol Use and Health(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - http://www.cdc.gov/alcohol/quickstats/general_info.htm
Participation in Self-Help Groups for Alcohol and Illicit Drug Use: 2006 and 2007(Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) - http://oas.samhsa.gov/2k8/selfHelp/selfHelp.htm
Quick Facts: Alcohol Topics(National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism) - http://www.niaaa.nih.gov/Resources/DatabaseResources/QuickFacts/
Quick Statistics on Treatment Facilities and Client Admissions by State(Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) - http://www.oas.samhsa.gov/2k5/Quick/Quick.htm
Substance Use and Dependence Following Initiation of Alcohol or Illicit Drug Use(Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) - http://oas.samhsa.gov/2k8/newUseDepend/newUseDepend.htm

MedlinePlus Magazine

The Science of Addiction - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/magazine/issues/spring07/articles/spring07pg14-17.html

Teenagers

Coping with an Alcoholic Parent(Nemours Foundation) - http://kidshealth.org/teen/your_mind/families/coping_alcoholic.html
Does Your Mom or Dad Drink Too Much?(Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) - http://csat.samhsa.gov/NACOA/feelssobad.aspx

Men

Helping Yourself Heal: A Recovering Man's Guide to Coping with the Effects of Childhood Abuse(Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) - Links to PDF - http://www.kap.samhsa.gov/products/brochures/pdfs/HelpingHeal-Mens.pdf
Also available in Spanish http://www.kap.samhsa.gov/products/brochures/pdfs/HelpingHeal-Mens-spanish.pdf
Men's Health: Alcohol and Drug Abuse(National Women's Health Information Center) - http://womenshealth.gov/mens/mental/achoholDrug.cfm

Women

Alcohol: A Women's Health Issue(National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism) - http://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/brochurewomen/women.htm
Also available in Spanish http://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/WomenSpanish/Women_Spanish.pdf
Helping Yourself Heal: A Recovering Woman's Guide to Coping with Childhood Abuse Issues(Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) - Links to PDF - http://www.kap.samhsa.gov/products/brochures/pdfs/helpinghealwomen_08r.pdf
Also available in Spanish http://www.kap.samhsa.gov/mli/docs/spanish/HelpingHealWomens-Spanish.pdf

Seniors

Alcohol Use and Abuse(National Institute on Aging) - http://www.nia.nih.gov/HealthInformation/Publications/alcohol.htm
Also available in Spanish http://www.nia.nih.gov/Espanol/Publicaciones/alcohol
Alcohol, Medication and Older Adults(Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) - http://pathwayscourses.samhsa.gov/aaac/aaac_intro_pg1.htm
Substance Abuse(AGS Foundation for Health in Aging) - http://www.healthinaging.org/agingintheknow/chapters_ch_trial.asp?ch=36

You may also be interested in these MedlinePlus related pages:

Alcohol - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/alcohol.html
Cirrhosis - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/cirrhosis.html
Fetal Alcohol Syndrome - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/fetalalcoholsyndrome.html
Underage Drinking - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/underagedrinking.html
Substance Abuse Problems - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/substanceabuseproblems.html

The primary NIH organization for research on Alcoholism is the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism - http://www.niaaa.nih.gov/

Alcoholism - Multiple Languages - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/languages/alcoholism.html