Women tend to develop alcohol-related diseases and other consequences of drinking sooner than men, and after drinking smaller cumulative amounts of alcohol. Women are also more likely to abuse alcohol and other substances in order to self-medicate problems such as depression, anxiety, and stress, or to cope with emotional difficulties. Changing attitudes toward heavy drinking by women may partly explain the rise in the number of deaths. Women’s alcohol consumption has been normalized, said Dr. Peter Martin, an addiction expert and a professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences and pharmacology at the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in Nashville, Tennessee.
- “Parenthood tended to be this protective factor,” but that’s not always the case anymore, said Adams, who studies addiction.
- Monitoring Risk Currently, healthcare providers rely on self-reporting to assess a person’s risk for alcohol abuse, a process that Dr. Grant says is subjective.
- Women are more likely than men to suffer alcohol-induced brain damage, such as loss of mental function and reduced brain size.
- But with marketing for alcoholic beverages increasingly geared toward women, and social drinking already a huge part of American culture, change isn’t something everyone may be ready to raise a glass to.
There aren’t enough studies on whether women drink more when they’re advertised lady-friendly booze, but underage drinking, which is better studied, does have a relationship to advertising. “Alcohol marketing plays a causal role in young people’s decisions to drink, and to drink more,” says David Jernigan, a health-policy professor at Boston University. The American College of Cardiology (ACC) is the global leader in transforming cardiovascular care and improving heart health for all.
Alcohol is killing more women than ever before
As the preeminent source of professional medical education for the entire cardiovascular care team since 1949, ACC credentials cardiovascular professionals in over 140 countries who meet stringent qualifications and leads in the formation of health policy, standards and guidelines. Through its world-renowned family of JACC Journals, NCDR registries, ACC Accreditation Services, global network of Member Sections, CardioSmart patient resources and more, the College is committed to ensuring a world where science, knowledge and innovation optimize patient care and outcomes. Cooper says enrolling in a 90-day residential treatment program in 2018 drastically changed her own perception of who is affected by addiction.
Different bodies, stronger effects
Perhaps most concerning is that the rising gender equality in alcohol use doesn’t extend to the recognition or treatment of alcohol disorders, Sugarman says. So even as some women drink more, they’re often less likely ketamine addiction to get the help they need. Camille Kezer, M.D., answers questions about alcohol use in women and liver disease. Unfortunately, women are prone to several conditions that may tempt them to overindulge in alcohol.
Some Women Should Avoid Alcohol Entirely
In one study, there was a 12% increase in breast cancer risk per 1 drink/day increase in average alcohol consumption. We know that alcohol induces widespread alterations in estrogen receptor physiology and function that in turn affect sensitivity and risk of estrogen positive breast cancer. In a recent study of alcohol-dependent men and women admitted to a detoxification program, Kirpich and colleagues (2017) found greater elevations in liver injury markers among the dangers of drinking after work female compared with male patients, despite a shorter duration of heavy drinking and lower mean drinks per day. In addition, women had similar levels of inflammatory cytokines but elevated levels of liver inflammation suggesting immunological differences that may contribute to more rapid and severe progression of alcohol-related liver damage in women. Stress and immune biology are different in men and women, affecting peripheral organ physiology differently.
Risk rises with consumption
Overall, 3,108 study participants were diagnosed with coronary heart disease during the four-year follow-up period, and the incidence of coronary heart disease increased with higher levels of alcohol consumption. Among women, those who reported high alcohol intake had a 45% higher risk of heart disease compared with those reporting low intake and had a 29% higher risk compared with those reporting moderate intake. The difference was greatest among individuals in the binge drinking category; women in this category were 68% more likely to develop heart disease compared with women reporting moderate intake. Men with high overall intake were 33% more likely to develop heart disease compared with men who had moderate intake.
When Canada published guidance in 2023 advising that drinking any more than two alcoholic beverages a week carried health risks, Koob sparked backlash when his comments to the Daily Mail suggested that U.S. guidelines might move in the same direction. The CDC report published in February suggested that an increase in alcohol taxes could help reduce excessive alcohol use and deaths. For women in particular, the line between healthful and harmful drinking is easy to cross. Because of body composition and other factors, women achieve a higher blood level of alcohol for each drink compared to men. This means women can become intoxicated faster and maintain blood alcohol levels longer, all which can lead to an increased risk for developing long-term health problems.