Young females are at a much greater risk than males, research shows.
It’s the end of a long week and you’re relaxing at home with a drink. The pandemic increased rates of alcohol consumption at home with restaurants and bars forced to close, and having a beer or a glass of wine alone at home has now become normal.
But it’s important to keep solo drinking in check. This is true for anyone but particularly for younger women. Research conducted by a team at Carnegie Mellon University has found there’s a strong link between people who drink alone during their teens and twenties, and the risk of becoming an alcoholic later in life. And females are at a greater risk.
Females more affected than males
A study published inThe Journal of Drug and Alcohol Dependence found some significant results. When it comes to developing alcoholism, drinking alone matters. Researchers found that up to 25% of teens and about 40% of young adults in the US said they drink alone. It was further found that females who drink alone in their teens are 86% more likely to become alcoholics by the time they reached the age of 35. For males in the same group, this risk is just 8% higher. Furthermore people who drink solo in their 20s were found to be 60% more likely to develop disordered drinking than those who only drank socially. This was true for both males and females.
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“Solitary drinking at younger ages is accounting for unique risk for future alcohol problems above and beyond earlier binge drinking and frequency of alcohol use, which are (both) well-known risk factors,” Kasey Creswell to CNN.
Creswell is an associate professor of psychology at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and the study’s lead author.
“This suggests that we should not only be asking young people about how much they are drinking and how frequently they are drinking in order to identify youth at risk, but that we need to also ask whether or not they are drinking alone,” she added.
The good news is, help is always available.
Getting help
According to Creswell, the main reason young people drink alone, (and likely others as well), is that they’re trying to help handle negative emotions. Alcohol can mask unwanted feelings. Obviously, relying on alcohol can be problematic, however.
When a person can’t stop drinking even if it’s causing themselves or those around them physical or emotional harm, they’re deemed to be an alcoholic.
It’s important to remember that alcoholism is a type of chronic disease or disorder. Once a person becomes addicted to alcohol, drinking can cease to be a conscious choice once dependency is developed. Experts say they feel the pandemic has increased problem drinking by exacerbating its prevalence through social isolation.
If you or someone you know is struggling with a drinking problem, don’t hesitate to get help. Contact your doctor for support or find help online. Several 12-step programs exist, as well as non-12 step rehab solutions that can help lead your life in a new direction. Connecting with these programs can put you in touch with people going through the same struggle and it can be worth the effort for your long term health.
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