Alcoholism is a term with multiple and sometimes conflicting definitions. In common and historic usage, alcoholism refers to any condition that results in the continued consumption of alcoholic beverages despite the health problems and negative social consequences it causes. Medical definitions describe alcoholism as a disease which results in a persistent use of alcohol despite negative consequences. Alcoholism may also refer to a preoccupation with or compulsion toward the consumption of alcohol and/or an impaired ability to recognize the negative effects of excessive alcohol consumption. Although not all of these definitions specify current and on-going use of alcohol as a qualifier, some do, as well as remarking on the long-term effects of consistent, heavy alcohol use, including dependence and symptoms of withdrawal.

Patterns of heavy drinking do not necessarily predict a person becoming dependent on alcohol. Although you must drink alcohol to become an alcoholic, how much and how often vary a lot from each individual. The biological progression which leads to alcoholism are still a mystery, although some factors such as psychological health and social environment have been observed.

Most people think of the Alcoholics Anonymous when asked about the term ‘alcoholism’. In fact it was first used as early as 1849 by a Swedish physician. In the U.S.A., ‘alcoholism’ was first brought into popular use by the birth of the AA in 1939. The ‘Big Book’ used by the AA lacked any clear definition, so it compared it to an illness like an allergy.

A study done in 1960 by Dr. Jellinek put forward the modern theory that alcoholism is a disease. Although the medical definition in usage has been altered since, the perception of alcoholism as a disease has a large influence and following. A few medical experts still content that alcoholism is not a disease and refer to it instead as ‘heavy drinking’ when talking about alcohol dependence.

Classifying someone as an alcoholic can be hard because the physiological features of an alcoholic and someone who drinks a lot can be the same. To identify an alcoholic, often it is necessary to judge the negative impact heavy drinking has on the person’s quality of life compared with the perceived benefits the alcoholic is receiving. There are always instances where it is difficult to establish whether or not a person is an alcoholic.

The main result of alcohol dependence is to force the victim to drink amounts of alcohol that are damaging to the body and mind. There is also collateral damage from the alcoholic’s inability to control his behaviour, and this can have a wider impact on others.

It is not unusual for an alcoholic to keep drinking even after his physical health deteriorates. The negative health issues caused by excessive alcohol consumption include alcoholic dementia, heart disease, epilepsy, cirrhosis and in many cases death.