The Paradox Of Alcohol Harm: What It Is And Possible Causes Of This Phenomenon
It is no mystery that alcohol is a substance that our body does not need but, despite this, we all drink it, whether we are rich or poor.
Despite this reality, it seems that the wealthiest classes have fewer negative effects associated with drinking compared to the most disadvantaged classes, those who receive the worst meal. Why is this?
This strange situation is called the alcohol harm paradox and, although ironic at first, it seems that there is quite a bit of meaning behind its occurrence.
Alcohol consumption is a widespread habit in most Western societies. Everyone, both rich and poor, drinks from time to time. Some may prefer beer and spirits, while others are more into wine, but whatever the case, alcohol consumption is a fairly common practice in any neighborhood. The majority consume it for leisure, since that is the only function that alcohol has, while others unfortunately drink because they have a serious alcoholism problem.
Alcohol is credited with being behind 5% of disabilities and illnesses and 5% of deaths worldwide Although rich and poor consume it apparently equally, it is the latter who suffer the worst effects. It has been seen that people with low socioeconomic levels have more disorders and diseases attributed to alcohol consumption than people with high economic levels or, in other words, the poor get sicker because of drinking than the rich. This curious situation has been called the alcohol harm paradox.
This phenomenon occurs globally, and is present in every society where alcohol is not a prohibited substance. In fact, a recent meta-analysis (Boyd et al., 2021) mentions several investigations carried out around the world, seeing this effect in countries such as Finland, the United Kingdom, Australia and the Netherlands, among many others.
We can also find it in slightly earlier studies such as, for example, the one carried out by the Scottish government in 2015. Their study showed that In the richest 50% of households, more than 45% of men drank at potentially harmful levels compared to 25% of men in the other half, economically more unfavorable. Although in that particular survey it was the rich who drank much more, those who suffered more diseases associated with alcohol consumption were the poor.
That same Scottish research saw that there were more alcohol-related deaths and hospitalizations among lower classes compared to higher classes. In fact, statistics showed that there were more deaths due to cirrhosis among the poorest population, a phenomenon that could be related not only to the effect of alcoholism but also to other drug addictions.
Logically, we might think that people who consume the most alcohol should suffer its worst effects, regardless of whether you are rich or poor, however How is it possible that even though the privileged classes can drink more, they are not so damaged by alcohol? This is the reason why it is called the alcohol harm paradox, since one might think that this substance is secretly applying some type of discrimination depending on the purchasing power of its consumer. Obviously, the answer is much more rational.
Why does this paradox occur?
Over the last few decades, drug addiction experts have found explanations for this phenomenon. It seems that one of the most important factors that explains the paradox is the type of alcohol consumer behavior (sustained or binge drinking) and the number of units of alcohol per week. Those who drink large amounts of alcohol at once tend to suffer more organic damage than people who drink regularly but more moderately, in low quantities.
This is where we find some of the main differences between rich and poor. People who live in rich neighborhoods tend to consume alcohol, usually wine, very moderately and, although they may do it every day, the fact of doing so in low doses means that the body is not subjected to too much stress. Instead, In the poorest neighborhoods it is common for the drinker, mostly of beer and spirits, to get drunk consuming huge amounts of alcohol at once, even if it is not every day. This last type of consumption is especially harmful to the heart and liver.
But the differences are not explained solely by the fact that the person who drinks does so compulsively or not. The harmful effects of alcohol increase when other factors are present, same factors that are especially common among the less fortunate classes such as having a poor diet, a higher percentage of overweight and less regular exercise. Added to all this, it has been seen that in poor neighborhoods there are up to four times more chances of being a smoker than in a rich one.
Another explanation is that In poorer neighborhoods alcohol is more easily obtained It is not that there are difficulties in obtaining it in rich neighborhoods, what happens is that in the poorest neighborhoods there is a greater presence of alcohol on the street, especially if we take into account that in this type of neighborhood there may be more than one bar. on a street, supermarkets with a wide variety of drinks and even bakeries where beer is sold. The easier alcohol is to obtain, the more harm is associated with its consumption.
But, to top all this off, there is a factor that explains very well why the poor suffer more from the effects of alcohol than the rich: access to health services. The wealthier classes can afford to go to a psychologist, be treated for their drug addiction problems, and also receive treatment to prevent their liver, heart, and other organs from receiving the damage associated with long-term alcohol consumption. Rehabilitation clinics are expensive and the poor simply cannot afford them.
Conclusions
The paradox of alcohol harm has helped us understand that, although there is no causal relationship between poverty and alcohol consumption, there is It is necessary to understand the potential harm of this substance in the most disadvantaged neighborhoods, where alcoholism is accompanied by other health problems such as a sedentary lifestyle and smoking. These problems are more difficult to treat in poor neighborhoods because people have more difficulty receiving adequate assistance because they cannot afford it.
Alcohol consumption is increasing every year. It is necessary to understand the implications of the alcohol harm paradox in order to develop a prevention strategy in poor neighborhoods, areas where alcoholism is most harmful. By understanding how alcohol affects people living in poor neighborhoods, it will be possible to prevent alcoholism from becoming a widespread social problem, which would cause many economic losses to public administrations due to the associated illnesses and death.
