Facts 3

Do a lot of people have problems with alcohol?
Some people think that they can’t develop an alcohol problem. However, alcohol abuse and dependence cut across economic class, gender, race, and nationality. Almost half of Americans aged 12 or older reported being current alcohol drinkers in 2001 (48.3%). This translates to an estimated 109 million people. In 2001 there were 13.4 million people classified with dependence on, or abuse of, alcohol (5.9% of the total population). Among past year users of alcohol, 9.3% were classified with alcohol dependence or abuse. ¹³

Are some people at greater risk?
The experience of addiction can be influenced by a person’s family or ethnic background, the attitudes friends and/or family members have toward alcohol and drinking, cultural or religious beliefs, lifestyle, the amount of stress in a person’s life, or some combination of these and other factors. ¹⁶

Personal experiences with alcohol

People who begin drinking before age 15 are four times more likely than those who begin drinking at age 21 to abuse or develop a dependence on alcohol. ¹⁷
People with one or more first degree relatives who abuse or are dependent on alcohol are two to seven times more likely to abuse alcohol or develop dependence on alcohol at some point in their lives. ¹⁸
An estimated 6.6 million children under the age of 18 live in households with at least one parent who abuses or is dependent on alcohol. ¹⁹