Alcohol consumption causes 5.3 percent of all deaths worldwide and is a factor in more than 200 disease and injury conditions, ranging from behavioural disorders to traffic accidents. Like other addictive substances, regular use can be difficult for users to give up — even when causing severe and obvious harm.
Once long-term alcoholism takes hold, it changes the brain at a cellular and anatomical level, reducing a person’s ability to resist alcohol cravings and fosters dependence. In severe cases, it can cause brain damage and dementia.
