Lisa Jarvis: Women are drinking more alcohol and it’s killing them
Lisa Jarvis: Women are drinking more alcohol and it's killing them Madison.com
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Women and Alcohol: A Growing Concern
Lisa Jarvis
Introduction
New data show that more U.S. women are dying from alcohol than ever before. Public health authorities need to adopt more effective strategies to help women realize when their drinking is a problem. Considering the many marketing messages pushing a “rosé all day” lifestyle, that campaign will be an uphill battle.
Alarming Statistics
A recent analysis of data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that alcohol-related deaths among women increased by nearly 15% per year between 2018 and 2020. The pandemic potentially exacerbated the trend, with overall alcohol-related deaths in the U.S. rising precipitously in spring 2020 and continuing to rise through 2021, the most recent data available.
The Convergence of Gender Differences
“If you go back to 1990, there were five times as many men who had alcohol use disorder than women — now it’s two times,” says George Koob, director of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. Men’s drinking has declined, while women are drinking more. “The gender differences are converging.” The trend starts early: College-age women now surpass their male counterparts in binge drinking, Koob says.
Factors Contributing to Increased Drinking
Those habits used to get curtailed when women married and had children — people are known to drink less during the life transitions of marriage and parenthood — but with more women delaying or forgoing both, the heavy-drinking behavior persists longer. According to a recent study, delayed motherhood is one of the factors creating a larger group of women at risk of alcohol abuse disorder.
Women at the top of the socioeconomic spectrum appear to be driving the change. “Increases in alcohol consumption and binge drinking are concentrated among the highest levels of education, highest level of family income and occupations that are considered more prestigious,” says Columbia University epidemiologist Katherine Keyes, who authored the study.
And it’s possible that marriage and parenthood no longer act as sufficient buffers against excessive consumption. Much ink has been spilled over the #winemom phenomenon. Researchers suspected the yearslong proliferation of memes about moms drinking to numb their stress might be helping to drive a fundamental shift in the acceptability of drinking.
Addressing the Issue
Unpacking why women are drinking more should shape public health experts’ strategy for reversing the trend.
SDGs, Targets, and Indicators
1. Which SDGs are addressed or connected to the issues highlighted in the article?
- SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being
- SDG 5: Gender Equality
- SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities
2. What specific targets under those SDGs can be identified based on the article’s content?
- Target 3.5: Strengthen the prevention and treatment of substance abuse, including narcotic drug abuse and harmful use of alcohol
- Target 5.1: End all forms of discrimination against all women and girls everywhere
- Target 10.2: By 2030, empower and promote the social, economic, and political inclusion of all, irrespective of age, sex, disability, race, ethnicity, origin, religion, or economic or other status
3. Are there any indicators mentioned or implied in the article that can be used to measure progress towards the identified targets?
- Indicator 3.5.2: Harmful use of alcohol, defined according to the national context as alcohol per capita consumption (aged 15 years and older) within a calendar year in liters of pure alcohol
- Indicator 5.1.1: Whether or not legal frameworks are in place to promote, enforce, and monitor equality and non-discrimination on the basis of sex
- Indicator 10.2.1: Proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income, by age, sex, and persons with disabilities
Table: SDGs, Targets, and Indicators
| SDGs | Targets | Indicators |
|---|---|---|
| SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being | Target 3.5: Strengthen the prevention and treatment of substance abuse, including narcotic drug abuse and harmful use of alcohol | Indicator 3.5.2: Harmful use of alcohol, defined according to the national context as alcohol per capita consumption (aged 15 years and older) within a calendar year in liters of pure alcohol |
| SDG 5: Gender Equality | Target 5.1: End all forms of discrimination against all women and girls everywhere | Indicator 5.1.1: Whether or not legal frameworks are in place to promote, enforce, and monitor equality and non-discrimination on the basis of sex |
| SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities | Target 10.2: By 2030, empower and promote the social, economic, and political inclusion of all, irrespective of age, sex, disability, race, ethnicity, origin, religion, or economic or other status | Indicator 10.2.1: Proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income, by age, sex, and persons with disabilities |
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Source: madison.com
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