You hear a lot about the dangers of tobacco and an unhealthy diet, but alcohol use is the third-leading cause of preventable death in the U.S.
Americans are not strangers to alcohol. But a new report from the CDC shows too much drinking may be even more harmful than some realize.
The report shows 32 people in the United States are killed every day in crashes involving an alcohol-impaired driver. That’s one death every 45 minutes.
The four-year study found that one out of every eight deaths that occurred in adults ages 20 to 64 was due to injury or illness caused by excessive alcohol use. And, among those aged 20-34, one in four deaths was attributable to drinking.
Over-use of alcohol can increase the risk of harmful events, such as motor vehicle crashes, drownings, falls, violence, suicide, alcohol poisoning, and risky sexual behaviors. It’s also been linked to illnesses like liver disease, cancer, heart disease, high blood pressure, digestive issues, memory problems, and depression.
But quitting isn’t always easy.
“We can see through the research that people can spend 10 years from the moment they wake up and think ‘Ugh is there something wrong with my drinking’ until actually stopping,” said Veronica Valli, Sober Coach and Author of Soberful.
According to Harvard Health, if you’re trying to curb your drinking habits, you might want to:
- Set a drinking limit goal
- Write down all the benefits of cutting back
- Eliminate all alcohol from your home
- Keep a diary of your behaviors
- Most importantly: get support!
“The number one thing is don’t do it alone. Community is so important,” Valli said.
The largest recent study in England found that 16-to-25-year-olds were the most likely to not drink at all. However, according to the 2019 national survey on drug use and health, about 70% of people of all ages reported that they drank alcohol in the past year and 55% reported that they drank in the past month.