Those with a history of alcoholism in their family have the highest risk of becoming alcoholics. If you have multiple relatives with alcohol addictions or other substance use disorders, you may have inherited the genes that put you at risk. The more family members (related by birth) you have with an alcohol problem, the higher your risk. The more risk factors a person has, the greater the chance of developing an alcohol use disorder or addiction.

According to the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, children of alcoholics are four times more likely than other children to become alcoholics. Yet, environmental factors could be a factor in many of those cases as well. – Addiction is a chronic disease that affects the brain’s reward center, and researchers have long debated over possible genetic and hereditary contributors to https://curiousmindmagazine.com/selecting-the-most-suitable-sober-house-for-addiction-recovery/ addiction. Alcohol use disorder (also referred to as alcoholism or alcohol abuse) is a massive problem in the U.S. In fact – one estimate proposes that as many as 18 million adults in the country suffer from alcohol use disorder – or approximately one in 12 people. A 2008 study performed at the University of Colorado investigated the genetic pathways that affected alcohol drinking behaviors.

Environmental Factors for Alcohol Use

Not only is alcoholism a progressive disease, but it is also a fatal one. You or your family member can get the proper help needed to overcome alcoholism or problematic drinking and are not bound to addiction by heredity or genetics. Support from family and friends will make this battle all the easier. If you have an increased risk of an alcohol use disorder, you can get a treatment program as we also offer an outpatient program for part-time hospitalization. The more frequently a person drinks over time, the more alcohol tolerance can develop. However, NIH research to identify co-occurring substance use disorder declares a 50 percent role of genes in alcohol dependency.

Studies show that genetics account for about half of your risk for alcohol abuse and addiction. They plan to continue investigating those links between genetic susceptibility to alcohol dependence and risk for other types of psychiatric illness. Your specific set of genes may make you more prone to developing an unhealthy taste for alcoholic beverages. But your upbringing and environment can also influence your alcohol intake habits.

Mental Illness and Alcohol Addiction

Therefore, the more genes present, the higher the likelihood of developing AUD, and thus we can infer that genetics do play some role. There are hundreds of genes in a person’s DNA that may amplify the risk of developing an alcohol use disorder. Identifying these genes is difficult because each plays a small role in a much larger picture. Yet studies have shown that certain combinations of genes have a strong relationship to alcoholism.

The DNA that your parents pass on to you dictates your physical and behavioral traits. If they have alcohol use disorders, then you have a risk of developing a drinking problem too. This risk is higher than for someone whose parents do not have alcohol addiction problems. Mental health conditions – psychiatric illnesses such as depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, ADHD, and PTSD place an individual at an increased risk of developing AUD. For these people, alcohol or other drugs is often used as a means to self-medicate against certain mental health symptoms.