Alcohol Statistics

Alcohol Statistics

More than 100,000 U.S. deaths are caused by excessive
alcohol consumption each year. Direct and indirect
causes of death include drunk driving, cirrhosis of the
liver, falls, cancer, and stroke.1

At least once a year, the guidelines for low risk
drinking are exceeded by an estimated 74% of male
drinkers and 72% of female drinkers aged 21 and older.2

Sixty-five percent of youth surveyed said that they got
the alcohol they drink from family and friends.7

Nearly 14 million Americans meet diagnostic criteria
for alcohol use disorders.5

Youth who drink alcohol are 50 times more likely to use
cocaine than those who never drink alcohol.3

Among current adult drinkers, more than half say they
have a blood relative who is or was an alcoholic or
problem drinker.1

Across people of all ages, males are four times as
likely as females to be heavy drinkers.1

More than 18% of Americans experience alcohol abuse or
alcohol dependence at some time in their lives.6

Traffic crashes are the greatest single cause of death
for persons aged 6-33. About 45% of these fatalities
are in alcohol-related crashes.4

Underage drinking costs the United States more than $58
billion every year--enough to buy every public school
student a state-of-the-art computer.2

Alcohol is the most commonly used drug among young
people.1

Problem drinkers average four times as many days in the
hospital as nondrinkers--mostly because of
drinking-related injuries.1

Alcohol kills 6½ times more youth than all other
illicit drugs combined.1

Concerning the past 30 days, 50% of high school seniors
report drinking, with 32% report being drunk at least
once.1

Sources
1. Substance Abuse: "The Nation's Number One Health
  Problem," Feb. 2001
2. Mothers Against Drunk Driving
3. National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse
4. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
5. Alcohol Health & Research World
6. National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism
  Analysis
7. The Century Council 

Report from the Greater Dallas Council on Alcohol and
Drug Abuse http://www.gdcada.org/statistics/alcohol.htm


Ed note: The news media almost daily report on the
numbers of deaths in the war on terrorism (which is
extremely sad and tragic), but rarely, if ever, do they
report on the abominable death rate caused by alcohol,
nor the number of babies killed every day by
abortion--not to mention the barbaric murder of babies
via partial birth abortion every year. 

"80,000 people died at Hiroshima, 35,000 died at
Nagasaki; yet in America, alcohol kills almost this
many in one year." -- Johnny Burkhart

"Wine is a mocker, strong drink is a brawler, and
whoever is led astray by it is not wise" (Proverbs
20:1).