Alcohol Poisoning Kills 6 People per Day in the United States: CDC

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Six people are dying every day from alcohol poisoning in the United States, according to a report published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

According to CDC, alcohol poisoning is normally caused by binge drinking at high intensity. The agency found that 38 million adults in the United States engage in binge drinking at an average of four times per month. These adults reported that they are consuming an average of eight drinks per episode of binge drinking.

The agency said men who practice binge drinking typically consume five or more alcoholic beverages in two to three hours while women four or more alcoholic beverages in the same amount of time. The CDC said most binge drinkers (90%) are not alcoholic dependent.

The results the study was based on the agency’s analysis of data for 2010 to 2012 from the National Vital Statistics System. The agency evaluated that average annual alcohol poisoning deaths and death rates in the United States.

The CDC discovered that during those years, an annual average of 2,221 deaths occurred due to alcohol poisoning in the United States (8.8 deaths per 1 million).

Majority of alcohol poisoning deaths happen among white people

According to the agency, a majority of alcohol poisoning deaths happen among non-Hispanic white people (67.5% or 1,500 people out of 2,221 deaths).

The study also showed that 75.6% or 1,681 deaths involved adults who were 35 to 64 years old while 76.4% or 1,696 involved men.

The CDC found that the highest age-adjusted death rate (49.1 per 1 million) was among American Indians/Alaska Natives.

The agency said the death rates from alcohol poisoning vary substantially by state. In Alabama, the age-adjusted rate of alcohol poisoning deaths were 5.3 per 1 million while 46.5 per 1 million in Alaska.

According to CDC, 30% of those who died from alcohol poisoning were alcohol dependent. The agency emphasized that preventing excessive drinking could reduce death from alcohol poisoning. Some of the strategies that

Alcohol poisoning is preventable

The CDC recommended evidence-based, population-level strategies to reduce excessive drinking and related harms including regulating alcohol outlet density and preventing illegal alcohol sales in retail setting.

“Death from alcohol poisoning is a serious and preventable public health problem in the United States. A comprehensive approach to the prevention of excessive drinking that includes evidence-based community and clinical prevention strategies is needed to decrease alcohol poisoning deaths and other harms attributable to excessive alcohol use,” according to CDC.

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