Alcohol is a drug, and as such has an impact on all of our lives whether intentional or not. Its impact can be felt in all aspects of life, one of them being the economic aspect. From an economic aspect, alcohol has destroyed homes and caused people to lose their jobs. Alcohol has caused people to lose the ability to work and cost them to lose the desire to work due to its addictive nature. According to this week’s readings, “in 2016, of all deaths attributable to alcohol consumption worldwide, 28.7 percent were due to injuries, 21.3 percent were due to digestive diseases (primarily cirrhosis of the liver and pancreatitis), 19 percent were due to cardiovascular diseases, 12.9 percent were due to infectious diseases (including tuberculosis, pneumonia, and HIV/AIDS), and 12.6 percent were due to cancers (most prominently those of the upper aerodigestive tract)21” (NIAAA, 2022). All of these conditions could have been avoided in the absence of alcohol. We see the direct result of alcohol being cirrhosis of the liver and pancreatitis and possibly indirect results attributed to alcohol such as HIV and AIDS. These conditions take people out of the workforce and remove them from being able to function for themselves and their families. The economic impact of alcohol reaches back to saloon times, as stated in this week’s readings where saloons were located strategically near the factories, allowing the workers to spend some money before they went home at the end of the week after getting paid. This was a twofold economic impact because it impacted the business and kept it booming yet negatively impacted the worker’s family and caused the worker financial hardship. Finally, we see how the economic impact on our workforce can be attributed to alcoholism on a greater societal level. “In 2016, approximately 14 percent of total deaths among people ages 20 to 39 are alcohol attributable. “(NIAA2022.) This removes a percentage of people from the greater workforce, creating a possibly larger economic burden and negative impact.
National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (2022) Alcohol Facts and Statistics National Institute of Health
National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (2022) Alcohol Facts and Statistics National Institute of Health