Like other chronic diseases such as heart disease or asthma, treatment for drug addiction usually isn't a cure. But addiction can be managed successfully. Treatment enables people to counteract addiction's disruptive effects on their brain and behavior and regain control of their lives.
How can you prevent alcohol abuse?
Alcohol use prevention is one of the most effective ways to reduce alcohol-related costs and harm. Alcohol abuse is responsible for claiming the lives of tens of thousands of lives every year and causing painful consequences like liver damage, threats to one’s wellbeing, withdrawal symptoms, and dysfunctional relationships.
For younger individuals, alcohol use prevention can reduce the likelihood of developing substance use disorders (SUD) as they age.Currently, alcohol abuse is responsible for costing Americans hundreds of billions of dollars annually. Although alcohol use cannot be completely stopped, there are several ways to temper alcohol use.
Assessing Your Drinking Levels
One basic methods for assessing whether or not you need to take steps to prevent alcoholism is to examine your own alcohol use. Know the difference between social drinking and alcohol abuse, such as binge drinking and heavy drinking. Social drinking is when someone drinks small amounts occasionally in social settings. Binge drinking occurs when women drink 4 or more drinks within 2 hours and when men drink 5 or more drinks per 2 hours. Heavy drinking occurs when a woman drinks 7 or more drinks in a week or when a man drinks 14 or more drinks in a week.