A Closer Look at Alcoholism

A Closer Look at Alcoholism

For years, it had been debated whether alcoholism is a disease or just a bad habit. A disease is defined as “a disordered or incorrectly functioning organ, part, structure, or system of the body resulting from the effect of genetic or developmental errors, infection, poisons, nutritional deficiency or imbalance, toxicity, or unfavorable environmental factors; illness; sickness; ailment” (Dictionary.com, 2009) On the other hand, a habit is a usual manner of behavior; a custom. Nevertheless, who wants their life to be destroyed by a drink that has been part of American history from the start? According to Gottfried (2005), alcohol has been “pervasive” in American society that can be traced back to colonial times. Alcohol affects every person’s body either directly or indirectly. Nonetheless, the effects are not the same for everyone. Some people, for genetic or other reasons, have a much stronger reaction to alcohol than others. Some people who drink develop problems with alcohol while others do not. Many believe that a person chooses to drink and become an alcoholic, (someone who is affected by alcohol) caused by moral failure. As stated in Opposing Viewpoints Series – Addiction, “Old ideas about the nature of addiction – that addicts are simply too weak willed to quit – keep people from seeing addiction as a chronic illness much like other brain diseases such as Alzheimer’s that affect brain behavior” (Gerdes, Cothran, Glassman & Szumski 2004). Researched studies are being conducted all the time and supporting evidence has been found in recent years that alcoholism is indeed a disease.
There are certain causes of alcoholism. Such causes include genetics, emotional state, and psychological, social and cultural factors. A person’s genetic make up could increase the risk of alcohol dependency. According to Gottfried (2005), a child becoming an alcoholic is greater when alcoholism runs in the family since there is a gene or combination of genes that is passed...

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