Binge drinking causes significant health and safety risks. The 2010 WHO Global strategy to reduce the harmful use of alcohol and the 2022 WHO Global action plan are the most comprehensive international alcohol policy documents, endorsed by WHO Member States, that provides guidance on reducing the harmful use of alcohol at all levels. WHO works with Member States and partners to prevent and reduce the harmful use of alcohol as a public health priority.
While the risk is low for moderate intake, the risk goes up as the amount you drink goes up. Global strategy to reduce the harmful use of alcohol In 2019, the worldwide total consumption was equal to 5.5 litres of pure alcohol per person 15 years and older. There are 230 different types of diseases where alcohol has a significant role. Explore a world of health data
This is particularly true for those in social environments with high visibility and societal influence, nationally and internationally, where alcohol frequently accompanies socializing. In many of today’s societies, alcoholic beverages are a routine part of the social landscape for many in the population. Alcohol is a toxic and psychoactive substance with dependence producing properties. You’ll soon start receiving the latest Mayo Clinic health information you requested in your inbox.
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The EU is the heaviest-drinking area globally, with 7 of the 10 countries with the highest per-capita alcohol consumption located within the EU. The adverse consequences of alcohol consumption include the negative consequences of drinking on individuals other than the drinkers themselves, including… Despite progress in reducing alcohol consumption and related harms, the Region continues to face significant challenges, including high rates of alcohol-related deaths, particularly from cancer. This drinking pattern is responsible for the majority of alcohol-attributable breast cancers in women, with the highest burden observed in countries of the European Union (EU).
- This initiative includes policies that reduce the affordability, availability, and acceptability of alcohol, particularly in the heaviest-drinking countries, mitigating the effects of alcohol consumption on public health.
- Alcohol is a toxic, psychoactive substance linked to over 200 diseases and conditions, including 7 types of cancer.
- Disadvantaged and vulnerable populations have higher rates of alcohol-related death and hospitalization, as harms from a given amount and pattern of drinking are higher for poorer drinkers and their families than for richer drinkers in any given society.
- Heavy drinking, including binge drinking, is a high-risk activity.
Impact on your safety
Heavy drinking, including binge drinking, is a high-risk activity. For example, any amount of drinking increases the risk of breast cancer and colorectal cancer. It also causes harm to the well-being and health of people around the drinker. The technical package for the SAFER initiative focuses on five key alcohol policy interventions that are based on accumulated evidence of their impact…
- The negative effects of alcohol consumption disproportionately affect younger and vulnerable populations, and contribute significantly to the burden of noncommunicable diseases in the Region.
- Alcohol use disorder can include periods of being drunk (alcohol intoxication) and symptoms of withdrawal.
- Alcohol is a toxic, psychoactive, and dependence-producing substance and has been classified as a Group 1 carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer decades ago – this is the highest risk group, which also includes asbestos, radiation and tobacco.
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- Theories suggest that for certain people drinking has a different and stronger impact that can lead to alcohol use disorder.
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Harmful use of alcohol is accountable for 6,9 % and 2.0% of the global burden of disease for males and females respectively. Overall, harmful use of alcohol is responsible for 4.7% of the global burden of disease. Drinking moderately if you’re otherwise healthy may be a risk you’re willing to take. During pregnancy, drinking may cause the unborn baby to have brain damage and other problems. Heavy drinking also has been linked to intentional injuries, such as suicide, as well as accidental injury and death.
“We cannot talk about a so-called safe level of alcohol use. Early intervention can prevent alcohol-related problems in teens. Too much alcohol affects your speech, muscle coordination and vital centers of your brain. Alcohol use may begin in the teens, but alcohol use disorder occurs more frequently in the 20s and 30s, though it can start at any age.
Global status report on alcohol and health and treatment of substance use disorders
If you are a Mayo Clinic patient, we will only use your protected health information as outlined in our Notice of Privacy Practices. Sign up for free and stay up to date on research advancements, health tips, current health topics, and expertise on managing health. Be sure to ask your healthcare professional about what’s right for your health and safety. When taking care of children, avoid alcohol. Health agencies outside the U.S. may define one drink differently.
Harm to others from drinking: patterns in nine societies
This initiative includes policies that reduce the affordability, availability, and acceptability of alcohol, particularly in the heaviest-drinking countries, mitigating the effects of alcohol consumption on public health. The Global alcohol action plan 2022–2030, endorsed by WHO Member States, aims to reduce the harmful use of alcohol through effective, evidence-based strategies at national, regional and global levels. This emphasizes the importance of protecting policy-making processes from industry interference that aims to delay or weaken public health measures that would reduce alcohol consumption.
Many people drink alcohol as a personal preference, during social activities, or as a part of cultural and religious practices. Drinking alcohol is a health risk regardless of the amount. The harmful use of alcohol results in the death of 2.6 million people annually. This manual is written to help primary health care workers – physicians, nurses, community health workers, and others – to deal with persons whose alcohol… Around 1 in every 3 deaths in men and 1 in every 5 deaths in women between 30 and 40 years of age were due to alcohol.
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The Global status report on alcohol and health and treatment of substance use disorders presents a comprehensive overview of alcohol consumption, alcohol-related… To combat this, WHO advocates for transparency in policy development, the exclusion of the alcohol industry from policy discussions, and the implementation of regulations to limit the industry’s influence on public health. A critical aspect of the Region’s approach is addressing the commercial determinants of health, particularly the influence of the alcohol industry on public health policy. Here, over 200 million people in the Region are at risk of developing alcohol-attributable cancer. It doesn’t matter how much you drink – the risk to the drinker’s health starts from the first drop of any alcoholic beverage. Theories suggest that for certain people drinking has a different and stronger impact that can lead to alcohol use disorder.
Knowing your personal risk based on your habits can help you make the best decision for you. People who choose not to drink make that choice for the same reasons. More on alcohol
The negative effects of alcohol consumption disproportionately affect younger and vulnerable populations, and contribute significantly to the burden of noncommunicable diseases in the Region. Every day, around 2191 people die from alcohol-related causes in the Region. The WHO European Region has the highest levels of alcohol consumption and the highest burden of alcohol-related harm in the world. “So, when we talk about possible so-called safer levels of alcohol consumption or about its protective effects, we are ignoring the bigger picture of alcohol harm in our Region and the world.
A relatively high proportion of alcohol harm occurs early in the life course. Despite this, the question of beneficial effects of alcohol has been a contentious issue in research for years. The only thing that we can say for sure is that the more you drink, the more harmful it is – or, in other words, the less you drink, the safer it is,” explains Dr Carina Ferreira-Borges, acting Unit Lead for Noncommunicable Disease Management and Regional Advisor for Alcohol and Illicit Drugs in the WHO Regional Office for Europe.
Consider talking with someone who has had a problem with drinking but has stopped. Listen to relatives, friends or co-workers when they alcohol poisoning symptoms and treatment ask you to examine your drinking habits or to seek help. You might not recognize how much you drink or how many problems in your life are related to alcohol use. Because denial is common, you may feel like you don’t have a problem with drinking. This disorder also involves having to drink more to get the same effect or having withdrawal symptoms when you rapidly decrease or stop drinking.
Health risks of alcohol use
A heavy drinking binge may even cause a life-threatening coma or death. Genetic, psychological, social and environmental factors can impact how drinking alcohol affects your body and behavior. If you’re concerned about someone who drinks too much, ask a professional experienced in alcohol treatment for advice on how to approach that person. If your pattern of drinking results in repeated significant distress and problems functioning in your daily life, you likely have alcohol use disorder. It also includes binge drinking — a pattern of drinking where a male has five or more drinks within two hours or a female has at least four drinks within two hours.
Unhealthy alcohol use includes any alcohol use that puts your health or safety at risk or causes other alcohol-related problems. Alcohol use disorder includes a level of drinking that’s sometimes called alcoholism. WHO has identified that the most cost-effective actions to reduce the harmful use of alcohol include increasing taxes on alcoholic beverages, enforcing restrictions on exposure to alcohol advertising, and restrictions on the physical availability of retailed alcohol.
The risks increase largely in a dose-dependent manner with the volume of alcohol consumed and with frequency of drinking, and exponentially with the amount consumed on a single occasion. Both the volume of lifetime alcohol use and a combination of context, frequency of alcohol consumption and amount consumed per occasion increase the risk of the wide range of health and social harms. Alcohol consumption contributes to 2.6 million deaths each year globally as well as to the disabilities and poor health of millions of people. In some situations, the risk of drinking any amount of alcohol is high. For men, heavy drinking means more than four drinks on any day or more than 14 drinks a week. For women, more than three drinks on any day or more than seven drinks a week is heavy drinking.