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NAME: ELSA SHAIKH

SUBJECT: SOCIOLOGY

SAP ID: 81012100612

TOPIC: ALCOHOLISM

SUB-TOPIC: CONSEQUENCES AND TREATMENT

SEMESTER: IIND

YEAR: 2021 – 2026

BATCH: B.A. LLB (HONS.)

SUBMITTED TO: MRS. RASHMI GUPTA MA’AM

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

ABSTRACT

CONSEQUENCES OF ALCOHOLISM

TRAETMENT OF ALCOHOLISM
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ALCOHOLISM

ABSTRACT

An alcoholic beverage is one of the most significant goods in the worldwide addiction
market. Alcohol consumption is a major problem in developing countries like India because
of different socio-cultural practises across the country, different alcohol policies and practises
across the various states, lack of community awareness of alcohol-related problems, false
mass media propaganda about alcohol use, various alcohol drinking patterns among the
alcohol consumers, and the emergence of social drinking as a habit due to widespread
urbanisation. Alcohol users must be taught about the different adverse consequences of
alcohol usage and the impacts it may have on their mind, body, and soul in order to limit
alcohol intake. Every year, 3.3 million people die from alcohol-related causes, accounting for
6% of all fatalities globally. Alcohol abuse has far-reaching implications, ranging from
personal health hazards, morbidity, and death to ramifications for family, friends, and society
as a whole. This article examines a few of the cultural and social factors that impact alcohol
use and situates individual alcohol consumption within the settings and situations in which
individuals live and interact. It covers macro level issues including advertising and
marketing, immigration and prejudice, and how neighbourhoods, families, and friends impact
alcohol consumption.1
Keywords: Alcoholic, dependence, hazardous drinking, liver cirrhosis, alcohol consumption,
alcohol misuse, morbidity, mortality, risk factors, alcohol-related consequences, social
factors, cultural factors, environmental factors.

 CONSEQUENCES OF ALCOHOLISM
In Indian society, the word "alcohol" has become commonplace. Alcohol has infiltrated the
lives of Indians in a massive and unrestrained way as a result of globalisation, urbanisation,
industrialisation, media influence, and changing lifestyles. Alcoholism has nearly devastating
repercussions in terms of personal unhappiness, family budget, family strife, wage loss,
health failure, and expense of custodial treatment in jail, monetary damages in courts, and
enticement to crime. The use and misuse of alcohol leads to societal deviances and issues.
Though the frequency of arrests for public intoxication in our nation is not high, it is well
recognised that arrest is not a good solution to the problem.2 A significant proportion of those
arrested for crimes including rape, burglary, murder, and theft did it while under the influence

1
https://www.alcohol.org/effects/

2
https://idoc.pub/queue/society-in-india-ram-ahuja-d49orz8e6249
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of alcohol. Highway accidents are frequently

caused by alcohol. It also causes tens of
thousands of deaths each year.
A high percentage of admissions to hospitals,
particularly mental hospitals, is related to
persons with ‘alcoholic disorders’ or a
‘drinking problem’. Other socially deviant
acts related to alcohol/drugs are thefts, bribes,
wife battering, and suicides. Studies on
suicide points out that suicide rate is 50 times
higher among alcoholics/drug users than non-
alcoholic and non-drug users.3
Since alcoholics/ drug users directly affect
four or five other persons (wife, parents,
children, siblings, close friends, co-workers)
the problem affects millions of people in the
society. Families of alcoholics and drug users
suffers the most. Even family violence, family
unrest and divorce is caused by alcoholism.
Drinking affects the business, the office
efficiency and factory production also. Absenteeism, low output and poor judgement leading
to work-related accidents, costs the government billions of rupees. Most factory owners
indicate a lack of interest and deny existence of these problems among their employees in
factories/offices to save themselves the botheration of adopting effective measures for
prevention.4
The drinker thinks alcohol will reduce his tension, guilt, anxiety and frustration. But the fact
is it reduces operational efficiency to below the minimum level necessary for social existence
or even for a bare existence. A drinker harbours the mistaken notion that alcohol can make
association and interpersonal activities easier in society. But in reality alcohol breaks down
an individual’s participation in associations and thus socially weakens the individual. It
impairs socially valuable ideas.
One consequence of alcoholism is that it has increased illicit bootlegging. Since
independence hundreds of tragedies have taken place throughout the country in thousands in
which thousands of people have died on consuming liquor produced illicitly. The victims of
spurious sura invariably are poor people.

DEATHS DUE TO ALCOHOLISM

About 132 lives were lost and 200 persons suffered physically in Baroda in Hooch tragedy in
1989; 200 persons living in four slums and North-West Delhi died on taking illicit liquour on
3
https://alcorehab.org/the-effects-of-alcohol/social/

4
https://www.greenfacts.org/en/alcohol/l-2/05-social-economic-problems.htm
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November 6 1991; about 100 persons died in South

Mumbai in a similar Hooch tragedy on January 1
1992; about 60 persons died in Tamil Nadu in March
1992; about 100 persons died in Cuttack city in
Orissa (now Odisha) on May 7 1992; about 52 people
died and more than 400 were taken in after
consuming spurious liquor in Hazaribagh and two
other district of South Bihar or November 1994 and
more than 33 people died in Hooch tragedy in Tamil
Nadu in October 1996 in Pudukkotai in Bengal, at
least 143 people died in its south 24 Paragana district
in December 2012. The same year about 28 people
died due to consumption of illicit liquor in Cuttack
and Bhubaneswar in Odisha. And recently (16th
October 2013) over 30 people died following
consumption on spurious liquid in Mubarakpure area

of Uttar Pradesh’s Azamgarh district.

Disasters will continue to take place in
future too. But no one has ever heard of
people dying after consuming IMFL.
The country liquid has various brands
through all of them are generally the
same quality and price. The alcohol
content in the country is about 28 per
cent, while in sura it is 32 per cent.
Usually pyridine is used for
denaturizing. This is neutralised by
citric acid. As the rectified spirit is
licensed, sometimes it is adultered with
methylated spirit. The poisonous drinks damage the eyesight, liver and kidney in the long
run. The administration will remain unresponsive to tragedies of taking illicit liquor and
government will have lackadaisical attitude and tackling this problem. At the most it will give
and ex-gratia payment of rupees 1 Lakh or so to the families of those killed in such tragedies.
The perfidious role of bootleggers, their muscle and money power are a matter of record in
communal rides. Many cities in the countries are torn asunder by the bootlegger-police-
politician nexus. The margin of profit in bootlegging is estimated to be 9 to 12 time of the
actual investment. No wonder a number of anti-social elements make it their business to
manufacture, transport and distributed illicit liquor. Justice Miyabhoy Commission instituted
by Gujarat government in 1981 to enquire into prohibition policy of state submitted his report
in 1983 and pointed out nexus between baron bootleggers and politicians and the fact that
almost all the bootleggers in the state (Gujarat) were anti-social elements capable of
terrorizing anyone trying to expose them.5

5
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Recently it has been observed that curbs on liquor leads to more deaths. According to
government statistics from 2009-2011, states with restricted consumption top hooch tragedies
tally compared to those with unrestrictive consumption. The data shows that Tamil Nadu has
recorded 1095 deaths, with Karnataka a distant second with 599 deaths, followed by Punjab
and West Bengal- both recording over 400 deaths- and Gujarat ranked fifth with 396 deaths
due to spurious liquor between 2009 and 2011. Conversely, states such as Goa, where
consumption of legitimate alcohol is promoted with low taxes, there have been no instances
of hooch tragedies during this period and the state has recorded zero deaths. (Times of India,
22 October 2013).6

 TREATMENT OF ALCOHOLISM
Physiological, psychological, and social therapies for alcoholism are all available. Many
physiological therapies are used in conjunction with psychological treatments, but they are
occasionally used in their "pure" form without any explicit psychotherapy goal. 7

 PHYSIOLOGICAL THERAPIES
Detoxification—the safe removal of the patient from alcohol, generally in a hospital setting—
is the most essential physiological medical therapy. This procedure avoids life-threatening
delirium tremens while simultaneously addressing untreated medical issues. Furthermore,
advanced hospital detoxification programmes provide patients and their families hope for
recovery and begin the alcoholic's relapse prevention education. Relapse prevention is
crucial, just as it is for quitting smoking. Disulfiram is a common contemporary medication
therapy for alcoholism that was developed in 1948 by Erik Jacobsen of Denmark
(tetraethylthiuram disulfide, known by the trade name Antabuse). Alcohol is normally
metabolised to acetaldehyde, which is then quickly transformed to innocuous metabolites.
The metabolism of acetaldehyde is prevented in the presence of disulfiram, which is itself
safe.8 The accumulation of highly poisonous acetaldehyde causes symptoms such as flushing,
nausea, vomiting, and a dramatic decrease in blood pressure, heart pounding, and even a
sensation of imminent death. The standard procedure is to give the patient a half-gram of
disulfiram in tablet form every day for a few days, followed by a tiny test sip of an alcoholic
beverage under carefully controlled settings and under medical supervision. The patient then
exhibits symptoms that clearly demonstrate the dangers of drinking while on disulfiram
treatment. The patient is prescribed a lower daily dose of disulfiram, and the fear of the
Author Ram Ahuja
Year published: n.d.
Book title: Social problems in India

6
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4872611/

7
https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/3909-alcoholism

8
https://www.alcohol.org/guides/treatments-of-alcohol/
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consequences of drinking functions as a "chemical fence" to keep him or her from drinking as
long as the prescription is taken. Apomorphine, niacin, LSD (lysergic acid diethylamide),
antihistaminic medicines, and a variety of tranquillizing and energising substances are among
the less scientific physical and chemical treatments that have been explored in the treatment
of alcoholics. Antidepressants and mood stabilisers (such as lithium) have lately been
attempted. However, none of these therapies, including disulfiram, has been found to be more
effective than a placebo in avoiding recurrence to alcohol consumption in long-term
investigations. Naltrexone (an opiate antagonist) and acamprosate, or calcium
acetylhomotaurinate (a modulator of gamma-aminobutyric acid [GABA] and N-methyl-D-
aspartate [NMDA] receptors), have recently been shown to be as effective as disulfiram in
preventing relapse for up to a year. However, no evidence exists that any of these drugs
lessens the chance of relapse in the long run.9

 PSYCOLOGICAL THERAPIES10
To treat the psychoneuroses and character disorders linked with alcoholism, psychotherapy
involves a variety of modalities, including individual and group procedures. The goal might
range from removing underlying alleged psychological reasons to inducing just enough
change in the patient's emotional and volitional state so that he or she can completely refrain
from drinking or simply drink in moderation. Psychoanalysis is rarely used to treat
alcoholism since it has had limited success. Analytical and cognitive-behavioural treatments
are becoming increasingly popular, and they are frequently used in combination with
supporting goals. Unfortunately, most psychotherapies' benefits on alcoholism are only
noteworthy in the short term, much as medication.11
A promising psychological approach known as "motivational interviewing" was created
expressly for alcoholism in the 1990s, and it involves finding a patient's motivation for
change. To build a desire and hope for change, the patient must first understand his or her
lack of control over alcohol and the severity of the issue. Only then will the patient be more
inclined to participate actively in the transformation process. When it comes to alcoholics,
group therapy is typically seen to be more successful than individual therapy. Instructional
lectures and superficial talks to profound analytic analyses, psychodrama, hypnosis,
psychodynamic confrontation, and marathon sessions are all examples of group therapy.
Mechanical assistance include instructive motion images, films of drunken patients, and
records of earlier sessions. Many institutional programmes employ a "total-push" strategy, in
which the patient is blasted with many treatment options in the hopes that one or more of
them may work. Other institutional regimens simply remove the patient from a stressful
outside environment and compel abstinence for a period of time. Psychoanalysts,

9
https://www.britannica.com/science/alcoholism/Social-treatment

10

Author Ram Ahuja

Year published: n.d.
Book title: Social problems in India

11
https://www.britannica.com/science/alcoholism/Social-treatment
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psychiatrists, clinical psychologists, pastoral counsellors, social workers, nurses, police or

parole officers, or lay counsellors (often former alcoholics with specific training) are among
the therapists available. Intensive inpatient therapy have not been demonstrated to be better
than considerably shorter outpatient interventions in careful, controlled, long-term
investigations of institutional programmes. Brief outpatient therapies, on the other hand, are
most effective while the addiction process is still in its early phases. In acknowledgment of
the fact that the "patient" in alcoholism is not just the alcoholic but also the family, treatments
have been devised for spouses and, on rare occasions, entire families, either individually or
collectively.12
Over the last few decades, psychologists have tried numerous times to create cognitive-
behavioural approaches for teaching a problem drinker how to return to drinking in
moderation. Brief interventions that help pre-alcoholics become aware of how much they
drink, the risks involved, and the regret they experience after heavy drinking have been
helpful in reducing consumption to safe levels in the early stages of problem drinking, before
plasticity regarding choice has been lost and physiological dependence has begun. These
methods have been consistently proven to be both effective and affordable. Attempts to
educate techniques to return to moderate drinking have proven difficult once a prolonged loss
of control has been established and fluidity of choice has been lost—a characteristic of most
people who acquire an alcoholic diagnosis.13 Long-term research have consistently shown
that continuous abstinence is the practical solution when the patient's own voluntary efforts to
reduce drinking have repeatedly failed. The treatment of diabetes is a good illustration for
why most professional alcoholism therapy has had minimal success. Medical intervention can
save lives in both diabetes and alcoholism, but long-term diabetes therapy relies on diligent
self-care (diet and insulin delivery) to avoid recurrence. Alcoholism follows the same
principles.14

 SOCIAL TREATMENT
Addicts in long-term naturalistic research have discovered four forms of nonmedical
community interventions that help with self-care and relapse prevention. The first is
inescapable external community monitoring, such as an employee assistance programme
linked to the alcoholic's workplace and requiring the alcoholic to join in order to keep his or
her job. The second category includes behaviourally competing replacements for the
addiction, such as obsessive hobbies, weight gain, or increased smoking. The third is the
"protective wall of human community," which may be found in therapeutic and religious
communities as well as new love connections, according to Carl Jung. Such interactions, of

12
N11

13
https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/3909-alcoholism

14

Author Ram Ahuja

Year published: n.d.
Book title: Social problems in India
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course, might lead to replacement dependencies. Unfortunately, previous connections are

frequently less beneficial for relapse prevention than new ones because of the alcoholic's
prior behaviour toward his or her family. The fourth community intervention is a growing
spiritual commitment, which can help people stay abstinent. In this vein, it's worth noting
that, in contrast to governmental interventions like prohibition in the United States, faith
communities (such as Islam and Mormonism) have been successful in promoting lifelong
abstinence.
Alcoholics Anonymous is a good example of combining these two methods of community
intervention (AA). AA is a men's and women's voluntary fellowship that allows members to
discuss their common experiences in a spiritual atmosphere and to assist each other get and
remain clean. In the United States, AA was started in 1935 by two alcoholics, Robert
Holbrook Smith and William Griffith Wilson, who were both heavily influenced by the
Oxford Group spiritual revival movement. The "12 Steps," a non-sectarian spiritual
programme that incorporates reliance on God—or any "higher power" as interpreted by each
individual—to assist prevent relapse into drinking, are followed by members of AA. It also
entails self-examination, personal acknowledgement of, confession of, and taking
responsibility for the harm caused by the member's alcohol-related behaviour, as well as
support to other alcoholics who are attempting to abstain. Members tell their tales about their
alcoholic experiences and their recovery at AA meetings. AA now has a global membership
of over two million people. The fellowship is structured into small local organisations with
no dues and only collects contributions from individuals who attend meetings to cover its
expenses. The "12 Traditions" of AA firmly oppose affiliation of the fellowship or its groups
with churches, politics, fund-raising, or prominent leaders. Finding a sponsor, joining a home
group, seeking others for support when afraid of relapse, serving others, and aiming for a
more spiritual life all tend to help maintain sobriety, according to existing studies.
15
Surprisingly, the intensity of alcoholism frequently makes sobriety and AA participation
easier. Just as many people do not begin an effective weight-loss and fitness programme until
after their first heart attack or accept a hip replacement until they are seriously incapacitated,
more symptomatic alcoholics are more likely to join AA than other alcoholics. AA appears to
address the deepest needs of its members. It allows individuals to connect with like-minded
people who understand them, as well as acknowledge the illness notion of alcoholism,
confess their helplessness over alcohol and need for assistance, and rely on others without
shame or stigma. The 12 Steps provide a structured, practical training programme that
encourages self-care and relapse prevention. The AA fellowship also provides community
monitoring and replacement rewarding behaviours (such as 24-hour meetings on holidays) to
combat return to alcoholism. Professionals in the area of alcoholism today view AA as, at
worst, a cheap complement to any therapy regimen and, at best, the preferred relapse-
prevention strategy. AA has produced associated but separate groups like as Al-Anon, which
is for alcoholics' spouses and other close family and friends, and Alateen, which is for their
adolescent children. The goal of these types of support groups is to teach members how to be
helpful and forgive alcoholic family. AA groups may be found in over 150 countries and use
15

Author Ram Ahuja

Year published: n.d.
Book title: Social problems in India
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the same "authorised" literature (including translations) provided by the organization's central
headquarters in New York City. Felons and physicians, young and elderly, minorities and
atheists, Catholics, Buddhists, and Hindus, as well as Protestants, are all members of AA.
Each AA group is autonomous, thus there are usually some differences in style and conduct.
AA organisations in certain countries are sponsored by or linked with national temperance
societies, or accept financial help from government health agencies, however AA's central
office discourages this.16

 RESULT OF TREATMENT
Treatment success for any behavioural or personality issue is difficult to assess, and
alcoholism is no exception. Some doctors feel that one or more of the therapies listed in this
section is superior for certain patients, although this has yet to be shown in a scientific study.
The most effective therapy may be the one in which the therapist or the patient has the most
faith. This subjective component might explain why controlled tests comparing different
therapies yielded lower outcomes than uncontrolled reports of alcohol therapy. The benefits
of novel treatments are frequently touted with zeal; nevertheless, a thorough assessment of
the data and controlled research typically disprove the promises. Follow-up studies of treated
alcoholics have frequently been too short to ascertain whether or not long-term improvements
were obtained, or the investigators have been unable to identify a significant number of
former patients. Furthermore, the definitions of "success" are contradictory. Some researchers
consider absolute abstinence to be a good outcome; others consider it successful if the
frequency of drinking sessions is decreased, or if the patient's self-destructive behaviour or
harm to others is minimised.17

CONCLUSION
This review of sociologically relevant alcohol research addresses definitions of alcohol
problems, describes patterns and trends in adult drinking practices and problems and
correlates of alcoholism, and describes social policy responses to alcohol. With implications
for many measures of social wellbeing, alcohol research is relevant to almost all areas of
traditional sociological interest, intersecting with religious and ethnic studies, with studies of
social change and social movements, with theories of social control, with criminology and
social deviance, with media research and analysis of social organizations, with study of age
and gender roles, with medical sociology, and with sociology of the work place.
Sociologically relevant alcohol research of the last few years, while rich in the above areas, is
by no means exhausted and holds great potential to illuminate issues of general interest to
sociologists as well as to specialists in medical sociology or deviance.18

16
https://www.britannica.com/science/alcoholism/Social-treatment

17
https://www.britannica.com/science/alcoholism/Social-treatment

18
https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/abs/10.1146/annurev.so.15.080189.001115
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