Alcohol Awareness Month

April is Alcohol Awareness Month, an opportunity to update your knowledge about alcohol use disorder (AUD) and the adverse impact of alcohol misuse on health and society. According to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), researchers estimate that each year there are more than 178,000 alcohol-related deaths, making alcohol a leading preventable cause of death in the United States. In addition, more than 200 disease and injury-related conditions are associated with alcohol misuse. You may have seen different terms that describe different patterns of alcohol consumption. These terms are useful in research and in helping people evaluate and make informed decisions about their own drinking patterns. 

Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD)

AUD is a medical condition categorized by an impaired ability to stop or control alcohol use despite adverse social, occupational, or health consequences. It encompasses the conditions that some people refer to as alcohol abuse, alcohol dependence, alcohol addiction, and the informal term, alcoholism. AUD can be mild, moderate, or severe. Lasting changes in the brain caused by alcohol misuse perpetuate AUD and make individuals vulnerable to relapse or return to use.

Alcohol Misuse

Alcohol misuse refers to drinking in a way, manner, situation, amount, or frequency that could cause harm to the person who drinks or to those around them. Alcohol misuse includes binge drinking and heavy alcohol use. However, there are situations in which some people should avoid alcohol completely, particularly if they:

• Plan to drive or operate machinery, or participate in activities that require skill, coordination, and alertness
• Take certain over the counter or prescription medications
• Have certain medical conditions
• Are recovering from AUD or are unable to control the amount that they drink
• Are younger than age 21
• Are pregnant or trying to become pregnant

Binge Drinking

The NIAAA defines binge drinking as a pattern of consuming alcohol that brings Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) to 0.08% or 0.08 grams of alcohol per deciliter—or higher. For a typical adult, this pattern corresponds to consuming five or more standard drinks (male), or four or more drinks (female), in about two hours. In the United States, a "standard drink" is defined as any beverage containing 0.6 fl oz or 14 grams of pure alcohol. 

For more information on alcohol, consumption, and misuse, contact your installation Alcohol Prevention Specialist at 252-466-8413.