Alcoholism In Native Americans Essay

While most live and go on with life in a pretty average way other choose to live a life where risk is almost the main aspect. Drug and alcohol use for many is a death sentence. What compels people to destroy their lives, their relationships and sometimes their own family? What effect does this have on the Native American population? It has long been known that Aboriginal people suffer from alcoholism in vast numbers but with this paper we will get an in depth look at how this happened and why is it still a problem. We will also see the effects this has on future generations, who grow up in such an environment and even those genetically inclined to such addictive behaviours. And according to the DSM-III-R there is a difference between abuse and dependence, “abuse being one or more of the following occurring in a 12 moths period; failure to fulfill major obligations at work, home or school, substance use in physically hazardous situations, substance related legal problems, and continued use even when suffering social and interpersonal problems because of substance use. Also the symptoms must never have met the criteria for dependence. Dependence on the other hand, is three or more of the following, occurring anytime in the same 12 month period; a need for increased amounts to achieve “high” or diminished effect of particular amount over time, withdrawal when not using or need for something to replace substance when not available,

Attempting to treat individuals that have alcohol related issues requires a depth of knowledge and skill, specifically, when providing care to individuals of differentiating ethnic and cultural backgrounds. The National on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) article discusses a multitude of resourceful information that is related to ethnicity, culture, and alcohol. Procuring detailed information that defines and discusses ethnicity, race, culture, cultural identification, ethnoculturally competence, and cultural competence provides a solid foundation for the beginner, intermediate, and expert clinician reading this material. This paper explores and offers an explanation of the author’s efforts to convey a clear, compelling and cogent message, the NIAAAs use of relevant sources to substantiate perspectives assumed, claims made and positions taken, and recommended strategies regarding suggested improvements to this article.

Not to be left out, The Economist published an article about alcoholism affecting Native Americans titled “The Wounds of Whiteclay An Alcoholism Epidemic Among the Lakota Sioux”. The article claims that “shops have been making immoral profits from the misery of vulnerable residents of the reservation” (Economist). Substance abuse is one of many reasons that many Natives do not go to college or receive higher education, as seen when Alexie writes “So what was I doing in racist Reardan, where more than half of every graduating class went to college? Nobody in my family had ever gone near a college” (Alexie, Forney, 56). All of these literary works show that alcoholism, along with other disadvantages brought to America by Europeans, hinders the success and the future of Natives.

In the United States, the one year prevalence of AUD is 8.5% among adults age 18 years and older. Rates of this disorder are higher among men (12.4%) than women (4.9%) (DSM-5, 2013). The prevalence is greatest among American Indians/Alaska Natives (AI/AN) (12.1%), followed by Caucasians (8.9%), Hispanics (7.9%), African Americans (6.9%), and Asian Americans (4.5%) (DSM-5, 2013).

Another disappointing fact from the Native Americans patients receive inadequate health care Native American receives. Diabetes, obesity, HIV, and substance abuse is all disease suffer from due to inadequate health care. For every three Native American there is one that is uninsured according to the American Indian health services. History is very noticeable in this issue, many times traders would give the native American alcohol for a trade. And the heavy drinking tradition was passed on generations through generation. But the alcoholism in Native american communities can not be approached with the normal health service because of the uninsured health services

American Indian and Native Alaskan populations on reservations or in urban areas have had extreme difficulty with the use of Alcohol. An average of 43.9% of AI/AN adults reported using alcohol within the last month, which is considerably higher compared to the national average of 30.6%. (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration [SAMHSA], 2011). Furthermore, 30% of American Indians reporting usage of alcohol within the last month also reported engaging in binge drinking episodes, which consist of consuming 5 or more alcoholic beverages in one sitting(SAMHSA, 2011); and this is considerably more than the national average of 24.6% (National Institutes of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, 2014). Those who

After providing background insight, the author utilizes data compiled from the external sources to show the differences in alcohol abuse between Native American and non-Native American populations. The suggestion is made that the underlying factor for alcohol abuse in Native Americans is the loss of their culture. Finally, the author compiles this information on Indian history and suggested causes of alcohol abuse in the population to devise treatment methods that embrace the revitalization of tribal

Unlike other cultures that have had thousands of years of getting use to the ingestion of alcohol, the relationship between Native Americans and alcohol is fairly new to their culture. Native Americans have had less time with developing the genetic tolerance of alcohol that exist among other ethnic groups. The combination of living in poverty, being in an ongoing state of oppression, and alcohol use is a recipe for disaster for many Native Americans. In comparison to the U.S. population in particular, the Native American populations are at higher risk of death caused by alcoholism diseases, domestic violence, and fetal alcohol syndrome. Interventions within the Native American communities have seen a decrease is some of the challenges they face regarding alcoholism.

The aforementioned populations have a significant amount of diversity within their groups. It is imperative that clinicians who are providing alcoholism, alcohol abuse, alcohol addiction care pay attention to the specific national origin, immigration and migration histories, region and geographic distribution, generational and cohort influences. In addition, group and religious affiliations, discrimination and oppressive experiences, resources, lifecycle phases, and gender must be considered to allow the clinician and individual or group an enhanced treatment experience. Statistical data that was displayed allowed for a visual representation of the epidemiology of alcohol related complications. The NIAAA further discusses that drinking patterns often exhibit diversity within a subgroup of the same racial and ethnic group. The NIAAAs information was informative and something that is abundantly necessary to efficiently practice as a social worker or individual that will provide care to individuals of diverse

This article is a review of previous literature studies conducted on the impacts of alcohol on Indigenous Australians. The Authors objective was to identify previous study methods, update previous reviews, and to investigate if the prior research can hold any keys to interventions that may be put into practice for future reduction of alcohol related harm in the Australian Indigenous population. Alcohol is known to be harmfully used and is a major public health issue. The literature states that Nationally, alcohol-related hospital admissions associated with dependence, acute intoxication and liver disease for Indigenous males in 2002/03 was between two and seven times greater than non-Indigenous males. (Shakeshaft, Clifford & Shakeshaft, 2010).

Alcohol abuse among Native Nations can be attributed to a number of factors, including the introduction of distilled alcohol and fortified wines from the European colonists, as well as current social and cultural factors. Prior to colonization, the Native population may have used alcohol in rituals and ceremonies but drinking to excess became an ‘acceptable’ pastime while they were waiting for annuity payments for ancestral lands sold to the United States.1 Extreme intoxication was common among many European emigrants and their behavior provided a strong role model for the social use of alcohol. Trappers, miners, soldiers, lumbermen and those who traded with the Natives were known for drinking and there are numerous historical accounts of

Like junk food, the health and social problems associated with alcohol dependency among Native communities can also be traced back to the actions of European immigrants. Western movies pushed the unflattering stereotype of the “drunken Indian” onto a mainstream audience throughout the twentieth-century, yet Hollywood was less forthcoming in documenting the fact that before colonisation, alcohol was non-existent within all but a small minority of Native groups located in the American Southwest, where its consumption was reserved for purely ceremonial purposes (Abbott, 1996: 3-5). It was not until white settlers learned that the drunkenness of Indigenous people could be beneficial for trade and treaty agreements that cheap high-concentration

People around the world and in different cultures consume alcohol for a variety of reasons, many of which are related to alcohol abuse. For whatever reason a person consumes alcohol, he or she should always practice moderation and consider how the abuse of alcohol may affect themselves, their families, and their community. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian is a prime example of this concept and explicitly shows how the damaging effects of alcohol abuse are not limited to the abuser and his or her household, but extend into the community on a much broader

I only mention this as the first nation have a proven problem with alcohol and drug consumption, There is an urgent and visible nature of alcohol and drug abuse among

African Americans represent 12 percent of the U.S. population, and more than half are women, and about 35 percent of those women live in poverty (U.S. Census Bureau, 2000). There are various patterns when it comes to drinking and alcohol addiction. Trends in alcohol use among African-American women show four percent of women aging from 19 to 29 years of age consume alcohol daily, while women ages 40 to 49 have the highest intake of alcohol consumption for women. Even though admissions to substance abuse treatment centers, among African Americans, have declined over the past twenty-seven years, African-American women continue to make up 25 percent of the center’s population. Although, patterns for the African American culture show that low-income men are at the highest risk for alcohol abuse (SAMHSA, 2015).