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Chapter 3

VITAL SIGNS: ADDICTION; Sales Estimates Paint Portraits of Alcohol Abusers

VITAL SIGNS: ADDICTION; Sales Estimates Paint Portraits of Alcohol Abusers

This activity contains 3 questions.

	What do statistics indicate regarding the extent of underage drinking in America?   "Underage and problem drinkers may account for more than a third of money spent on alcohol products, researchers said yesterday." "Writing in Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, the researchers reported that in 2001 underage drinkers spent an estimated $22.5 billion, more than 17 percent of the total amount spent on alcohol. Adults with alcohol dependence problems spent almost $26 billion." "The study said the drinking behavior of a quarter of the underage drinkers surveyed already could be considered alcohol abuse." "The extent of underage and problem drinking could be even greater, the researchers said. By some calculations, they said, almost half of all expenditures on alcohol are by underage and problem drinkers."

	What are the future implications of these findings?   Alcoholism in adulthood for those who drink young and heavy. "The figures, the researchers say, paint a disturbing portrait of the extent of underage drinking today and of what the future may hold...It cited research suggesting that people who begin drinking before age 15 are four times as likely to become dependent on alcohol as those who start after they turn 21." d d c

	What suggestions can you provide for impacting the problem of problem underage drinking and alcoholism among adults?   vvv ddd ''Research suggests that an effective way to prevent pathological drinking is to delay the onset of regular drinking,'' ddd

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