Alcoholism

Alcoholism is Twice as Deadly for Women vs. Men

According to a new German study, the disease of alcoholism may be two times as fatal for women as it is for men. The recent news post shows that female alcoholics were twice as likely to die from the disease as men were in the German population.

The study also showed that women alcoholics were up to five times more likely than men to die throughout the 14 year study period conducted. In addition, alcoholics in this study weren’t any more likely to live if they underwent any type of specialized medical treatment or detox programs compared to those who didn’t seek any help.

Previous studies regarding alcohol mortality rates had focused on those who were already in treatment. This new study began with over 4,000 people in the general population of northern Germany.

Researchers conducted interviews on the participants and asked them questions about their alcohol use. Based on alcoholism criteria, 153 of them were classified as alcoholics.

Researchers then followed up with 149 of them 14 years later. Almost one-fifth of those alcoholics were dead within the 14 year period. Seven of those dead were from the pool of the 30 women and 21 were from the group of 119 men.

For women, this correlated to a yearly death rate at 1.67 percent. For men, the yearly death rate was at .36 percent. It appeared the women developed more health risks that were associated with the disease of alcoholism yet the reasons for it were not clear. Females developed diseases like cirrhosis of the liver in a shorter time span.

Researchers also concluded that alcoholics who did seek specialized treatment had the same death rate as those who were not in treatment. The key may lie in educating doctors about alcohol prevention in the first place at annual checkups.