Are alcohol problems the same for men and women

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Are alcohol problems th= e same for men and women?

Sex differences in alcohol abuse and dependence

= &nb= sp; = &nb= sp; = by Kay Hurlock, Psy.D., Clinical Psychology Associates of North Central Florida, P.A.

· <= span style=3D'color:navy'>Are there gender differences in rates of alcohol use a= nd abuse?

o&nb= sp; = Alcohol Dependence and Abuse comprise one of the most common disorders.<= /span>

o&nb= sp; = Males are generally twice to five times as likely to experience alcohol abuse or dependence.

o&nb= sp; = Recent research indicates a disturbing trend: Adolescent females 12 to 17 are equa= lly as likely as adolescent males to have met alcohol abuse or dependence criteria.

o&nb= sp; = Males account for more treatment admissions for alcohol abuse than do females.=

o&nb= sp; = More than 40% of people who initiat= ed drinking before age 15 were diagnosed as alcohol dependent at some point in their lives.

o&nb= sp; Although in the past women generally start= ed drinking at later ages than men, more recent survey data show a trend that alcohol abuse and dependence rates in women are increasing.

o&nb= sp; While females who abuse alcohol usually st= art later than males, problems tend to develop more rapidly so that by middle a= ge women often encounter the same problems as men.

· <= span style=3D'color:navy'>Does alcohol affect women the same as it affects men?<= /span>

o&nb= sp; Women appear to be more susceptible than m= en to many adverse effects of alcohol use.

o&nb= sp; Women achieve higher concentrations of alc= ohol in the blood and become more impaired than men after drinking the same amou= nt of alcohol. This is because women absorb and metabolize alcohol differently then men. Basically, women ha= ve less body water, so they achieve higher concentrations of alcohol in the bl= ood after equivalent amounts of alcohol.

o&nb= sp; = The different body composition and increased alcohol concentrations make women = more susceptible to earlier health effects of alcohol abuse and dependence.=

· Are there Special Concerns for Women regarding Alcohol Use, Abuse or Dependence?

o&nb= sp; Victimization

· Women with a history of childhood neglect significantly have more alcohol-related symptoms, independent of parental alcohol or other drug (AOD) problems, childhood poverty, race, and age.

· Physical abuse during adulthood has also b= een associated with women's alcohol use and related problems.

· A survey of female college students found a significant relationship between the amounts of alcohol the women reported drinking each week and their experiences of sexual victimization.

· Another study found that female high school students who used alcohol in the past year were more likely, than non-drink= ing students, to be the victims of dating violence (e.g., shoving, kicking, or punching).

· A history of heavy premarital drinking, by both partners, has been found to predict first-year aggression among newlyw= eds. In some studies, problem drinking by wives has been linked to husband-to-wi= fe aggression regardless of the husbands' drinking levels.

Health Consequen= ces

· Research suggests that women are more at r= isk than men to medical problems, psychological or physical trauma, legal and interpersonal difficulties.

· Liver Damage

· Women will develop alcohol-induced liver disease over a shorter period of time and after consuming less alcohol.

· Women are more likely than men to develop alcoholic hepatitis and= to die from cirrhosis.

· = Women’s higher risk of liver damage may be due to the effects of the female hormone estrogen.

· Breast Cancer

· = Severa= l studies report that moderate to heavy alcohol consumption increases the risk for br= east cancer.

· Motor Vehicle Accidents

· Although women are less likely than men to drive after drinking and less likely to be involved in fatal alcohol-related crashes, women have a higher relative risk of driver fatality than men at similar blood alcohol concentrations.

· Women's lower rates of drinking and driving may be attributed to their lower tendency toward risk taking compared with = men.

· Women are also less likely to view drinking and driving as acceptable behavior.

Referen= ces: =

American Psychiatric Association (2000).<= /span> Diagnos= tic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, Text Revision, Washington, D.C.

NIAAA. Alcohol Alert No. 46: Are Women More Vulnerable to Alcohol’s Effects?. Rockville, MD: the Institute, 1999.=