WHY IS AN ALCOHOLIC AN ALCOHOLIC?

by Lida Prypchan

Only by understanding the numerous and complex causes of alcoholism, can the gravity of the problem be appreciated so that therapy may be practiced on an individual level and the disease combated on the social scale.  There are four main causes: DESIRE, TOLERANCE, PERSONALITY, BIOLOGICAL TYPE and HEREDITY:

DESIRE: Firstly we must analyze the hedonic value and the mythical prestige of alcohol: The history humanity shows man’s tendency to seek out pleasure and flee from pain.  This epicurean propensity makes man an easy prey to alcohol, because it has an effect as a tonic and euphoriant, relieves anxiety and frees repressions.  Secondly, certain social prejudices or false beliefs such as the one which attributes medicinal properties to alcohol, or the one which says that it increases a man’s strength and virility.  Thirdly, social pressures.  It is well known that the act of “drinking together” creates solidarity between men.  On the other hand, some drink with their colleagues after work because of peer pressure, so as not to be rejected by the group.  Other pressures come from bombardments of commercials which advertise alcoholic drinks, their cheapness, and the abundance of drinking establishments.  All this great economic power is in the hands of the alcohol magnates, owners of wealthy alcohol manufacturing companies, for whom anti-alcohol campaigns are not profitable.

TOLERANCE: By this is understood the relationship between the concentration of alcohol in the body and the degree of intoxication.  Tolerance varies from one individual to another according to age, sex, hereditary predisposition, food habits, the physical and psychic state and the time of intoxication.  For the alcoholic to seek out drink and to become used to it, he must have a form of tolerance which protects him from major organic disturbances and a form of habituation which makes alcohol a sort of food supplement necessary for the balance of his disturbed metabolism.  This has given rise to the opinion that the metabolic disturbances of alcoholism may in turn condition the alcoholic habit.

PERSONALITY AND BIOLOGICAL TYPE: The “alcoholic personality” has been discussed.  They are individuals who display moral frailty, weak character, lack of social adaptability, sexual disturbances and frequently neurosis.  It must, however, be recognized that often a bad beginning in life, social failure and, particularly, conflicts in the emotional arena can cause a nervous depression which the individual attempts to overcome by “stimulating” himself with alcohol.

With regard to the biotype, it can be said that the pyknic type (with a tendency for obesity and cyclothymic disturbances) tends toward chronic alcoholism, while the long and lean type (schizoid) tends toward delirious alcoholism.

HEREDITY: It was formerly believed that the alcoholic had hereditary defects in his ancestry which were magnified as they passed down the line.  The authors of this theory stated, “Degenerates breed drinkers and drinkers breed degenerates, a vicious cycle maintained by alcohol”.  This degeneration theory is accepted less and less.  It is undeniable, however, that alcoholism is more frequent in the families of alcoholics.

In practice, a greater incidence is observed in persons who have a family history of alcoholism.  In this respect, it would be appropriate to ask whether it is a function of example, early initiation, defective education or genetic factors.

Only one thing amongst all this is certain and that is that alcohol, although socially permissible, is a drug which, like all the others, needs people to campaign for its eradication.