Not only is alcohol use disorder (AUD) on the rise, it now affects nearly a third of the adult population in America, according to a recently published NIH study supported by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA).
In the study, which was published in the journal JAMA Psychiatry, researchers at the NIAAA found that nearly one-third of the adults in the United States met the requirements of alcohol use disorder at some point in their lives, however, less than one-fifth of those afflicted with the disorder sought treatment.
While it’s not the nearly 30 percent who meet the standards for AUD, 14 percent of U.S. adults were found to misuse alcohol, according to the study.
As for drinking problems, an estimated 32.6 million Americans were found to have had drinking problems within a 12-month period.
The study’s findings accounted for, the NIAAA’s director Dr. George F. Koob was quoted by Live Science as having said that they “underscore that alcohol problems are deeply entrenched and significantly under-treated in our society” and that the “new data should provide further impetus for scientists, clinicians, and policy makers to bring AUD treatment into the mainstream of medical practice.”
These findings underscore that alcohol problems are deeply entrenched and significantly under-treated in our society (…) The new data should provide further impetus for scientists, clinicians, and policy makers to bring AUD treatment into the mainstream of medical practice.
In continuance of the largest study ever conducted on the affects of alcohol and drug abuse on mental health, the National Epidemiology Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions, the team of researchers behind the study conducted over 36,000 face-to-face interviews of adult Americans.
Among other things, the researchers, who were led by Dr. Bridget F. Grant, found that the intensity of drinking is increasing, as more people are now having at least five, eight or ten drinks in a single sitting, CBS DC reported.
In other alcohol related coverage here at Immortal News, researchers behind an unrelated study found that children who taste alcohol at an early age are more likely to drink come high school.
