What would life be without Alcohol?

Often times I have wondered what would man do without alcohol. The use of alcohol as been extensively abuse by many who consider it as a soothing agent for body, mind and soul.  What makes man to damn the consequences, knowing one or two harms in its consumption.

The effect of alcohol consumption is said to  have been felt in more than 200 disease and injury conditions. Drinking alcohol is associated with a risk of developing health problems such as mental and behavioural disorders, including alcohol dependence, major noncommunicable diseases such as liver cirrhosis, some cancers and cardiovascular diseases,   injuries resulting from violence , road clashes and collisions and most importantly infertility.

These are the key facts you should know before you take your next glass. According to WHO , 3.3 million world wide deaths are recorded every year result from harmful use of alcohol, this represent 5.9 % of all deaths.

• ‘The harmful use of alcohol is a causal factor in more than 200 disease and injury conditions.
• * Overall 5.1 % of the global burden of disease and injury is attributable to alcohol, as measured in disability- adjusted life years
• * Alcohol consumption causes death and disability relatively early in life. In the age group 20 – 39 years approximately 25 % of the total deaths are alcohol-attributable.
• * There is a causal relationship between harmful use of alcohol and a range of mental and behavioural disorders, other noncommunicable conditions as well as injuries.
• * The latest causal relationships have been established between harmful drinking and incidence of infectious diseases such as tuberculosis as well as the course of HIV/AIDS.
• * Beyond health consequences, the harmful use of alcohol brings significant social and economic losses to individuals and society at large.’