alcohol abuse

CDC: 1 in 10 Adult Deaths Due To Alcohol Abuse

Excessive alcohol consumption was associated with 1 in 10 deaths of working age adults in the United States between 2006 and 2010, according to a new report from the CDC. 

In order to estimate the impact of excessive drinking on loss of life, researchers analyzed data from the Alcohol-Related Disease Impact application—a survey providing state-specific estimates on alcohol-related deaths.
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Excessive drinking was defined as:

  • Binge drinking: 4 or more drinks on an occasion for women and 5 or more drinks on an occasion for men.
  • Heavy drinking: 8 or more drinks a week for women and 15 or more drinks a week for men.
  • Any alcohol use by pregnant women or those under the minimum legal drinking age of 21.

Deaths were attributed to diseases associated with long-term alcohol abuse (breast cancer, heart disease, liver disease) and incidents associated with excessive drinking over a short period of time (violence, car accidents, alcohol poisoning).

Deaths among working-age adults (age 20-64) accounted for 70% of alcohol-related deaths during the time frame, of which, 70% were men. Five percent of the deaths involved individuals under 21 years old.

Overall, they reported, approximately 88,000 adults died during the investigation, having had their lives shortened by an average of 30 years. 

“This analysis illustrates the magnitude and variability of the health consequences of excessive alcohol consumption in the United States, and the substantial contribution of excessive drinking to premature mortality among working-age adults,” they concluded. 

“More widespread implementation of…including increasing alcohol prices by raising alcohol taxes, enforcing commercial host liability, and regulating alcohol outlet density, could reduce excessive alcohol consumption and the health and economic costs related to it.”

–Michael Potts

References

Stahre M, Roeber J, Kanny D, Brewer RD, Zhang X. Contribuution of excessive alcohol consumption to deaths and years of potential life lost in the United States. Prev Chronic Dis. 2014 June 26 [epub ahead of print] DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5888/pcd11.130293

CDC. One in 10 deaths among workin-age adults due to excessive drinking [press release]. June 26, 2014. http://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2014/p0626-excessive-drinking.html. Accessed June 26, 2014.