Treatments
To achieve the best results, it is vital to incorporate methods effective against a specific type of addiction. Reportedly, medical treatment is the most effective in combating alcoholism (Anderson Redal, Thomas, Sim, & Campbell, 2019). The second and third best treatments are Alcoholics Anonymous meetings and non-medical outpatient care (Anderson et al., 2019). Therefore, each of these methods could be part of the individual strategy to treat alcohol addiction with consideration of the patient’s biological, psychological, and interpersonal dynamics. In addition to that, there are alternative treatments and techniques aimed at reducing alcohol addiction. Some of them, however, are either costly or damaging, while the effectiveness of others is under-researched.
Biopsychologic Model of Alcohol Consumption 5
Generally, alcoholic beverages contain at least 0,5% of alcohol, in most cases, though the percentage is higher than that.
Drinking is culturally acceptable, yet it can cause a series of problematic effects. These include harmful drinking, alcohol dependence, and alcohol addiction. Moreover, alcohol abuse is damaging for health despite the positive short-term impact of liquor on the human psyche.
Alcohol use
Alcohol use is widespread among people of various age groups. Within the biopsychological model, there are three factors determining predisposition to alcohol consumption and addiction: biological, psychological, and interpersonal ones (Lehman, David, & Gruber, 2017).
From a biological perspective, one could develop an addiction, which would further stimulate alcohol consumption. In addition to that, chronically ill people, children, pregnant women, and those genetically predisposed to cardiovascular diseases will likely experience harsher repercussions of alcohol use.
As for the psychological dimension, people who continuously experience stress or depression might self-medicate with alcohol (Müller et al., 2017). Therefore, insufficient mental wellbeing could encourage alcohol consumption and abuse. The interpersonal dynamics include both the immediate social circle and broader social tendencies. Thus, a person can resort to drinking either by copying family members and acquaintances or being frustrated with interpersonal relations. Moreover, a more extensive system of perceived connections with online friends, media personalities, and even companies can influence personal choices and behaviors.
Media Influence
Modern-day digital media is effective in encouraging alcohol consumption. It can boost the sales of a new alcoholic beverage (Lobstein, Landon, Thornton, & Jernigan, 2016). It also allows brands to launch multiple campaigns targeting specific audiences in personalized and convincing ways. The most susceptible to such marketing are teenagers, who copy behavior they observe via both traditional media and social media (Moreno, D’Angelo, & Whitehill, 2016). Even though to limit alcohol consumption, most states either regulate or limit offline advertising, digital media continues to stimulate the use of alcohol.
Risks and Benefits
Alcohol consumption produces some positive effects, but, more importantly, entails significant health risks as well. On the one hand, voluntary alcohol use may selectively alleviate depression (Müller et al., 2017). In contrast, excessive drinking and alcohol abuse can intensify depressive states (Müller et al., 2017). What is more, regularly drinking alcohol harms the liver, and can lead to brain damage and cardiovascular diseases. Thus, there is a thin line between improving and worsening one’s mental condition by consuming alcohol and a high chance of developing an addiction, brain pathology, liver disease, or a heart condition.
References
Anderson, S. E., Redal, M., Thomas, L. A., Sim, G., & Campbell, B. (2019). Comparative expected value analysis study on programs, treatments, medications and products reducing the prevalence of smoking, alcoholism, depression and obesity in the United States. Account and Financial Management Journal, 4(12), 2048-2053.
Lehman, B. J., David, D. M., & Gruber, J. A. (2017). Rethinking the biopsychosocial model of health: Understanding health as a dynamic system. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 11(8).
Lobstein, T., Landon, J., Thornton, N., & Jernigan, D. (2017). The commercial use of digital media to market alcohol products: A narrative review. Addiction, 112(1), 21-27.
Moreno, M. A., D’Angelo, J., & Whitehill, J. (2016). Social media and alcohol: Summary of research, intervention ideas and future study directions. Media and Communication, 4(3), 50-59.
Müller, C. P., Kalinichenko, L. S., Tiesel, J., Witt, M., Stöckl, T., Sprenger, E.,… & Amato, D. (2017). Paradoxical antidepressant effects of alcohol are related to acid sphingomyelinase and its control of sphingolipid homeostasis. Acta Neuropathologica, 133(3), 463-483.