Alcohol

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Man with young boy on shoulders.
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Key Takeaways

  • Alcohol is among the most used drugs, plays a large role in many societies and cultures around the world,1 and greatly impacts public health.2,3 More people over age 12 in the United States have used alcohol in the past year than any other drug or tobacco product, and alcohol use disorder is the most common type of substance use disorder in the United States.4
  • NIDA works closely with the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), the lead NIH institute supporting and conducting research on the impact of alcohol use on human health and well-being. For information on alcohol and alcohol use disorder, please visit the NIAAA website.
  • Because many people use alcohol while using other drugs,4 NIDA supports and conducts research on both the biological and social dynamics between alcohol use and the use of other substances.

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NIH Resources

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Go to the NIAAA Web site

NIDA Resources

Additional Resources

References
  1. Sudhinaraset M, Wigglesworth C, Takeuchi DT. Social and Cultural Contexts of Alcohol Use: Influences in a Social-Ecological Framework. Alcohol Res. 2016;38(1):35-45.
  2. Witkiewitz K, Litten RZ, Leggio L. Advances in the science and treatment of alcohol use disorder. Sci Adv. 2019;5(9):eaax4043. Published 2019 Sep 25. doi:10.1126/sciadv.aax4043
  3. GBD 2016 Alcohol Collaborators. Alcohol use and burden for 195 countries and territories, 1990-2016: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2016 [published correction appears in Lancet. 2018 Sep 29;392(10153):1116] [published correction appears in Lancet. 2019 Jun 22;393(10190):e44]. Lancet. 2018;392(10152):1015-1035. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(18)31310-2
  4. Substance Abuse Center for Behavioral Health Statistics and Quality. Results from the 2021 National Survey on Drug Use and Health: Detailed Tables, SAMHSA. Accessed January 2023.