Alcoholisim in France...?

Show all answers

ChocoBN

I agree with the person who said you need to define alcoholism first. Are you talking about overall alcohol consumption or alcohol dependence or issues linked to alcohol?

Whichever definition you want to give it, alcoholism has decreased steadily since 1960 along with the production and consumption of wine, the most consumed alcoholic drink. France used to be one of the most alcoholic countries in Europe, now it's in the average.

CONSUMPTION:

In terms of overall consumption, wine has been part of French culture for so long that until the 60's, drinking wine with lunch and dinner was the norm. Now only 12% of the French drink wine every day with their meals. 2% drink beer daily and 0.8% drink spirits daily.

Still, because it is part of the culture, the consumption of alcoholic beverages is still higher than average in France with 9 to 14 liters of pure alcohol per person a year (it was 27 liters in 1960).

Wine is favored by adults and older people. Beer and spirits are favored by younger people.

7% of the adult population say that they drink too much. The heaviest drinkers are the 45-59 year-old age group. The older the age group, the more they drink. (After 60, the rates start dropping again because older people have to stop drinking to avoid health complications).

France ranks 21st in Europe for teenage consumption of alcohol, which places it in the European average.

Despite an overall decrease in alcoholism, binge drinking among teenagers, which didn't exist until recently, appeared around 2000-2001 and is supposedly on the increase, with the government making it a priority to fight this new phenomenon.

The French drink less wine than before but drink higher quality wines now. In the 60's they drank table wine, now they favor fine wines. The consumption of beer hasn't changed in 40 years.

In a 2003 survey, 14.4% of the French say they have been drunk at least once in the past year. In the 20-25 age group, it's one third. Males are 3 times more likely to get drunk than females.

ALCOHOL DEPENDENCE

2 million French people are alcohol dependent, which is a little over 3% of the total population.

In the US and Canada: 12% of total population
In the UK and Australia: 4%

Add another 3 million people who have a problem with alcohol other than dependence (like occasional heavy drinkers or people who respond very badly to alcohol) and you reach a rate of 8 to 9% of people who have a "problem with alcohol" (North America: 30%).

CONSEQUENCES OF ALCOHOLISM

Alcohol is the second leading cause of preventable deaths in France. This includes alcohol-related diseases and accidents.

[In the US, it is the 3rd leading cause of preventable deaths, not because the situation is better in the US but because obesity (which is not as big an issue in France as in the US) is the 2nd cause.]

CONCLUSION:

France has one of the highest consumptions of alcoholic beverages in the world, but it's mostly (80%) wine rather than hard alcohols and the rate of alcohol addiction, abuse and other alcohol-related issues is now in the low average compared to other industrialized nations. Overall, the French don't drink to get drunk like in the UK. Alcoholism has been decreasing steadily for the last 40 years.

Here is a site in English (I haven't read it yet) which might help you:
http://www.greenfacts.org/fr/alcool/l-2/01-number-people-affected.htm#0
http://www.greenfacts.org/fr/alcool/l-2/02-alcohol-consumption.htm#1

Adrian C

Alcohol does not respect class, status race or gender, however as wine is part of the fabric of French life it is rarely perceived as a problem so statistics may not be too accurate it is not necessarily the amount consumed that causes the problem and the effects can be disguised. good luck with your coursework

Lobengula

That's a tough piece to write.

I would first define "alcoholism". It's an arbitrary definition. Who is an alcoholic?

French people drink a lot of wine (generally speaking), U.S. people eat a lot of sugar and fat. Greek people smoke a lot.

You get my idea? Different cultures indulge in different food, drink and drugs.

This may be harmful. You can get diabetes, heart diseases and cancer. This focus on alcohol is interesting but what really is more interesting is the mortality rate and life expectancy. We all die sooner or later.

With that in mind, french people live longer than U.S. people! Even though they drink more wine. Is "alcoholism" really relevant? Why has a U.S. citizen lower life expectancy than a French?

Souly

hello, I'm french, effectly alcoholism is a reality in france since 1960
This website is French (I didn't found American website, sorry)
it's very complet and clear
http://www.cyes.info/cirdd/alcool/chiffres_alcool.php

Enter Your Message or Comment

User Name:
User Email:
Post a comment: