Women and Alcohol

Recent studies show differences between men and women and how alcohol affects them.  A study by Columbia University found that women become addicted faster than men. Another study showed that alcohol impacts a woman’s body faster than a man’s. What alcohol will do to a man in 10 years, it'll do to a woman in 5 years.

Alcohol is more damaging to a woman’s liver than a man’s. Women develop liver disease in a much shorter time than men do and after drinking less. Columbia University found that women drinking as little as two drinks a day face significant risks of liver damage. Women can increase their risk of breast cancer if they drink as little as one ounce of alcohol per day. Risks increase as drinking increases.

Following are some additional facts about women and alcohol:

• Women become intoxicated more quickly.
• Women’s health problems are more serious.
• Women have increased risk for heart disease, ulcers, osteoporosis, pancreatitis, and memory loss.
• Women experience increased toxic effects of alcohol on the heart muscle.
• Women are twice as likely to die of alcohol related diseases.
• More women develop drinking problems later in life than do men.
• Women are less likely to be diagnosed with alcoholism or receive alcoholism treatment.

These differences between men and women may be related to women’s lower body water content, body weight, and stomach enzymes. Combined with advanced age, these factors cause greater harm.