Alcohol

(See: Drugs in American Society, 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th editions, Erich Goode, McGraw-Hill, 1999/2005/2008/2012. Chapters 4 and 8, and Drugs, Society, and Human Behavior (7th ed), Ray and Ksir, Mosby, 1993. Chapters 9 and 10 and the disclaimer)

The alcoholic is the typical addict

History, Chemistry and Variety

Ancient History:

Alcohol was discovered in 8327 B.C. on a warm afternoon by "Grog" who returned to his cave and drank the fermented milk of a coconut that had been cracked and left out in the sun. ;-) (it's a joke)

How much did they drink in medieval Europe?

Fermentation:

Distillation and Distilled Spirits

(see: http://www.homedistiller.org/)

To produce higher levels of ETOH; heat mixture to evaporate alcohol, trap vapors in condensing coil-- Voila!: Hard Liquor (early distillation technology probably resulted in concentrations of about 50% (100 proof)

DATE MATERIAL FERMENT DISTILLATE ORIGIN
800 BC rice
millet		 Tehoo Sautchoo China
rice
molasses
palm sap		 Toddy Arrack Ceylon
India
mare's milk Kumiss Arika Tatars
mare's milk Kefir Skhou Caucasus
rice Sake Sochou Japan
500 AD Honey Mead Distilled Mead Brittain
1000 AD Grape Wine Brandy Italy
1100 AD Oats
Barley		 Beer Usqubaugh Ireland
1200 AD Grape Wine Aqua Vini Spain
1300 AD Grape Wine Cognac France
1500 AD Barley Beer Whisky
Aqua Vitae		 Scotland

Distillation Technology

  • By 17th Century: 95% Alcohol possible
  • Variety of grains used==> Grain Neutral Spirits ("Everclear")
  • Variety of uses now: add to gasoline, industrial solvent, and (of course)-- beverages
  • Proof at which distillation occurs==> Taste
  • Proof==> twice the percentage of Alcohol: British army-- add to gunpowder and ignite==> "pooooff!" (57% alcohol)
  • Higher the proof, lower the by-products: Congeners, other alcohols (methyl, isopropyl), oils.

  1. Whiskey became Common by 1500
  2. Whiskey was Introduced to the Americas ~late 1700's
  3. Became the chief export of settlements west of the Appalachian Mountains: Grain to expensive to transport. 10 bushels of corn could be reduced to 1 barrel of whiskey.
  4. 1789: Elijah Craig of Bourbon, KY: Store whiskey in new, charred oak barrels: American bourbon. (Canadian whiskey: uncharred).
  5. Whiskey: Typically distilled at less than 160 proof (grain flavors)

Consumption

Beer

(Do you Need Beer?) (We Want Beer)

Types

Breweries and the Consumption of Beer

 Beer and culture: (a new section just getting started)

Wine

Types

Other Variations

Fortified wines

Consumption

Alcohol consumption, overall

WWW Links: Sites Relating to Alcohol Use and Consumption

Absorption and Metabolism

Impact on CNS

Acute Objective effects

BAC/BAL

BAL

Effect

.03

Dull and dignified

.05 (~2 beers in one hour)

Dashing and debonair

.1 (~4 beers in one hour

Dangerous and devilish

.2

Dizzy and disturbing

.25

Disgusting and disheveled

.3

Delirious and disoriented

.35

Dead drunk

.6 (~one quart of whiskey in one hour)

Probably DEAD (local copy)

(adapted from Bogen in Ray and Ksir, 8th ed. 1999, p. 222)

Other Acute Objective Effects

Chronic Objective Effects

Other Effects: Alcohol worse than heroin and cocaine?

Subjective Effects

Drunken Comportment: MacAndrew and Edgerton
(1969, 1976) (See: Social and Cultural Aspects of Drinking)

Aggression and Violence

Sexual Behavior: Same patterns and variations

Consumption and Control in the USA

National Alcohol Prohibition (1920-1933)

    1. Feasibility of enforcement
    2. Thought it would automatically reduce drinking
    3. Variations and exceptions
    4. Seen as a solution to a variety of problems
    5. "Temperance, Prohibition, Alcohol Control" (Harry G. Levine and Craig Reinarman, FROM PROHIBITION TO REGULATION: LESSONS FROM ALCOHOL POLICY FOR DRUG POLICY).

Did it Work?

Lessons

  1. Problems of lack of regulation- Licensing and state regulation now control central elements of production and distribution
  2. Question the effectiveness of Criminalization
  3. Alcohol Control after Prohibition: See "Shedding a Tier" from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (4/28/05) for an account of contemporary revisions to the policies put in place to control alcohol production and sale after prohibition.

Prohibition Resource Page: http://www.authenticwinecountry.com/Prohibition

Use Today

The Marin Institute: The Alcohol Industry and Policy Database

Gallup poll 1939 1947 1976 1990
Drinker 58% 63% 71% 57%
abstain 42% 37% 29% 43%

Drinking in the USA (1995 data- no significant change: Goode, 1994, 1999)

SES % of Households
Over $50,000 85% (more frequently, too) social expectations?  Up from 75% in 1991 (45% drink regularly)
$30-50,000 70% (approximate based on 50% in 1991)
$20-30,000 57% (approximate based on 50% in 1991)
Under $20,000 54% (up from 46% in 1991) (18% regularly)
  • College: Young adults aged 18 to 22 enrolled full time in college were more likely than their peers not enrolled full time (i.e., part-time college students and persons not currently enrolled in college) to use alcohol in the past month, binge drink, and drink heavily. Past month alcohol use was reported by 64.4 percent of full-time college students compared with 53.2 percent of persons aged 18 to 22 who were not enrolled full time. Binge and heavy use rates for college students were 44.8 and 19.5 percent, respectively, compared with 38.3 and 13.0 percent, respectively, for 18 to 22 year olds not enrolled full time in college.
  • The pattern of higher rates of current alcohol use, binge alcohol use, and heavy alcohol use among full-time college students than the rates for others aged 18 to 22 has remained consistent since 2002.
  1. In 2009, 57.6 percent of males aged 12 or older were current drinkers, higher than the rate for females (46.5 percent). However, among youths aged 12 to 17, the percentage of males who were current drinkers (15.1 percent) was similar to the rate for females (14.3 percent).
  2. Among young adults aged 18 to 25, an estimated 57.7 percent of females and 65.9 percent of males reported current drinking in 2009. These rates are similar to those reported in 2008 (58.0 and 64.3 percent, respectively).
  3. Men drink about 2x as much as females, have more problems
  4. Women's drinking is increasing; more likely to drink alone. Male's drinking declining--yet daily use is still twice that of females.
  5. 1999 NHS:
    • With the exception of adolescents, males were more likely than females to report past month alcohol drinking. In 1999, 54.0 percent of males (ages 12 and older) were current drinkers compared to 41.1 percent of females.
    • For the youngest age group (12 to 17), males and females had comparable rates of current alcohol use (19.2 percent of males and 18.1 percent of females).
    • Among pregnant women age 15-44 years, 13.8 percent used alcohol and 3.4 percent were binge drinkers. These rates are substantially lower than the rates for nonpregnant women of that age (49.3 percent and 19.4 percent, respectively).

6. 2005: 58.1 percent of males aged 12 or older were current drinkers, higher than the rate for females (45.9 percent). However, among youths aged 12 to 17, the percentage of females who were current drinkers (17.2 percent) was higher than that for males (15.9 percent).

Religion Percentage Problems
Judaism Most drink relatively few problems for those who drink
No religion 73%  
Catholics 75%  
Protestants 57%  
Southern Baptist 55% Many problems attached to those who drink
East Coast 64%
West Coast 62%
Midwest 54%
South 50%


2009 NHSDUH

  1. African Americans: High abstinence, low rate of heavy drinking, high risk of problems
  2. Hispanics: High abstinence, high rates of heavy drinking, high rates of problems
  3. Asians: Highest rate of abstainers, lowest rate of heavy drinking, lowest rate of problems ("Flushing")
  4. Native Americans: Great deal of variation, extremely high rates of problems
  5. Whites: High use rates. Heaviest: Irish (most likely to drink and high rate of problems) Italians, Northern WASPs, Slavs, Germans. Low rates: Latins and Southern Whites.
  6. 2009 NSDUH:
  • Among persons aged 12 or older, whites in 2009 were more likely than other racial/ethnic groups to report current use of alcohol (56.7 percent). The rates were 47.6 percent for persons reporting two or more races, 42.8 percent for blacks, 41.7 percent for Hispanics, 37.6 percent for Asians, and 37.1 percent for American Indians or Alaska Natives.
  • The rate of binge alcohol use was lowest among Asians (11.1 percent). Rates for other racial/ethnic groups were 19.8 percent for blacks, 22.2 percent for American Indians or Alaska Natives, 24.1 percent for persons reporting two or more races, 24.8 percent for whites, and 25.0 percent for Hispanics.
  • Among youths aged 12 to 17 in 2009, Asians had lower rates of current alcohol use than any other racial/ethnic group (6.5 percent), while 10.6 percent of black youths, 11.9 percent of American Indian or Alaska Native youths, 15.2 percent of Hispanic youths, 16.1 percent of white youths, and 16.7 percent of youths reporting two or more races were current drinkers.


2009 NHSDUH

Alcoholism

Marijuana

URL: http://www.umsl.edu/~keelr/180/alcohol2.html
Owner: Robert O. Keel rok@umsl.edu
References and Credits for this Page of Notes
Last Updated: Tuesday, March 19, 2013 8:07 AM