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Alcohol AbuseAmerica’s Drinking Problem

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CONTENTS• How We Stack Up 3• Teen Drinking 4• Binge Drinking 5• Issues in the Media 6• Drinking & Driving 7• What Influences Us to Drink 8• Annual Deaths 9• Solutions 10• Resources 11

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How We Stack Up

Alcohol-re-lated Deaths

0.00%

5.00%

10.00%

15.00%

20.00%

25.00%

30.00%

35.00%

40.00%

United States

0-4yrs5-14yrs15-29yrs30-44yrs45-59yrs60-69yrs70-79yrs

Alcohol-re-lated Deaths

0.00%

5.00%

10.00%

15.00%

20.00%

25.00%

30.00%

35.00%

40.00%

Europe

0-4yrs5-14yrs15-29yrs30-44yrs45-59yrs60-69yrs70-79yrs

Alcohol Consumption

0 500 1000 1500

EuropeUnited States(in pints)

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o The average drinking age for teens = 13o 63% of female teens who drink will become teen motherso People age 12-20 =142,000 hospitalizations from alcoholo Kids that drink at 15 are 5x more likely to have dependency

issueso Underage drinkers consume 20% of all alcoholo 90% of kids drinking are binge drinking

Underage Drinking

5Binge Drinking

• Accounts for 4,554 underage deaths• Underage people more at risk to binge drink

• Encouraged by:• Media• Drinking Games• Social Stigmas• Peer Pressure

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Targets Youth &

Men

Sponsors Sporting Events

Portrays Unrealistic

Fun

Ignores Negative Effects

45% of all ads are alcohol-related

Glorifies Alcohol

Incorporates Holidays w/Alcohol

Use of Sexuality

MED I A

7Drinking & Driving

Because of drinking and driving:

• 10,228 people were killed in 2010• Another 350,000 were injured• Every day 3 teens are killed• Every 53 minutes someone is killed• 1/3 of DUIs will become repeat offenders

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What Causes Consumption

Media

Peer Pressure

Dry Culture

High Drinking

Age

Genetics Problem Solving

Association Factor Upbringing

9Annual Deaths

Deaths Caused by Alcohol

Liver CirrohsisTraffic AccidentsOther Unin-tentional In-juries

373,900

268,000

223,000Every year over 2 million deaths are attributed to alcohol

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Solutions• Help leadership, awareness & commitment• Health services’ response• Community action• Drunk–driving policies & countermeasures• Availability of alcohol• Marketing of alcoholic beverages• Pricing policies• Reducing negative consequences• Reducing public health impact of illicit alcohol• Monitoring & surveillance

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Resources:• http://www.cdc.gov/alcohol/ • http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1357892/

U-S-drinks-lowest-alcohol-developed-world-figures-reveal.html

• http://www.dontletminorsdrink.com/reportsresearch/underagedrinking.shtml

• http://www.nhtsa.gov/people/outreach/traftech/1995/TT085.htm

• http://www.madd.org/drunk-driving/ • http://www.mdt.mt.gov/safety/docs/taskforces/ojj

dp_feb01.pdf

• http://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/arh27-1/95-109.htm