Alcohol is a "psychoactive" or mind-altering drug. It depresses the central nervous system. It can alter moods, cause changes in the body, and become habit forming. So, alcoholism is drug dependency. It can be as addictive as any other drug.

Statistics:

Alcohol is the number one widely used mind altering substance. There are approximately 11 million alcoholics in the United States. Three million of those are teenagers ages 16-24. The younger the drinker, the faster the addiction to alcoholism develops. Youth may become alcoholic in six months to three years, versus the 10 to 15 year pattern for adults.

Alcoholic related accidents are the leading cause of death to young people, followed by homicide and suicide. Nearly 12,000 young people are killed each year in car accidents involving alcohol (60% of people killed in highway fatalities are in their teens). Every 7.5 minutes 1 young person dies in an alcohol-related car accident.

• 50% of high school students that drink alcohol drink in cars.
• 92% of seniors have tried alcohol.
• 56% of high school seniors reported that they began using alcohol in the 9th grade. (Texas War on Drugs Survey).
• 35% have frequent occasions of heavy use.
• 75% of arrests on college campuses were alcohol related.
• 85% of sexual assaults on college campuses were alcohol related.
• 50% of suicide attempts were alcohol related.
• 75% of teenagers drink alcohol.
• There are 500,000 alcoholics in the United States between the ages of 9 and 12.

Many people stereotype an alcoholic as a skid row bum, however this person makes up only 4 -5 % of the alcoholics in this country. Alcoholism knows no racial, social economic or sexual barriers.

The effects of Alcohol:

A little alcohol (casual drinking—a little wine with dinner, or 1 beer on occasion) will impair judgment and coordination. A little more alcohol (social drinking—weekend drinkers) will increase incidence of aggressive behavior. In moderate to high doses alcohol will induce vomiting and impairment in higher mental functions, severely altering the ability to learn and remember. In very high doses, (constant drinking—daily consumption) alcohol causes respiratory depression and death.

Serious health problems can and do occur before drinkers reach the stage of addiction. It can cause cancers of the liver, stomach, colon, larynx, esophagus and breast; damage the brain, pancreas and kidneys; and cause high blood pressure, heart attacks and strokes.

Alcohol abuse during pregnancy causes birth defects. Mothers who drink alcohol during pregnancy may give birth to infants with birth defects called "fetal alcohol syndrome,(FAS)".These defects include mental retardation, irreversible physical abnormalities, behavioral problems, facial abnormalities, and defects of the heart, lungs, joints, and sexual organs.

Current information indicates babies can develop some of the FAS symptoms even if the mother drinks only occasionally. No safe level of drinking during pregnancy has been established.