Posted by todd (63.10.27.100) on August 20, 1999 at 17:44:22:
Hi gang-
I'm back on my analysis kick. A local tv station (not the one that interviewed me, unfortunately) has added a Healthbeat section to their webpage. Todays page includes two studied just released by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)-one on smoking and one on drinking. Here's how we compare to the national figures, based on the 1322 survey responses here on the board as of now.
52% of Americans over 12 y/o have had at least one drink in the past 30 days.
15.2% have binged (5 or more drinks at one time) at some time
5.6% have binged within the past 30 days.
Estimated 4.7-7% are alcoholics or problem drinkers. I'm not sure of the definition of this, but I do know 6 or more drinks per week is considered 'heavy drinking' but the medical community.
Now us-
35% drink on special occasions only (might that be monthly?)
27% drink weekly
10% drink daily
Total-72% of us drink, probably a rough comparison to the 52% of Americans.
BTW-there was no significant change in the drinking patterns of Americans since 1988.
Smoking- SAMSHA says:
27.7% of Americans 12 and older smoke, which is down from 29.6% in 1997.
57% of us smoke.
So, while I completely discredit the old "All CH'rs are smokers, drinkers or both" saw, it does seem that we do tend to indulge in tobacco and alcohol at a higher rate than the general population. Now the question might be, is this causative,resultive or coincidental? Too many of us, I think, had CH before smoking or drinking, so I doubt it's causative. Did we take up tobacco or alcohol as a result of CH? Does surviving a cycle make us feel 10 feet tall and bulletproof, or conversely trigger a self-destructive reaction? I don't know the answers to these questions, and I'm not soliciting input, but rather just presenting some things for all of us to think about.
KTSSU,
T