Some people believe that alcoholism is herediatary, I'm inclined to believe that that is not neccessarily true. If this was true everyone would be an alcoholic. I think that is just an excuse to blame our family for a problem that we get from society. Just because it may be hereditary, doesn't mean you're gonna be an alcoholic. You have choices. What do you think?? Is alcoholism hereditary?
2007-04-05 13:55:25 · 33 answers · asked by stoutunicorn 6 in Entertainment & Music ➔ Polls & Surveys
I have alot of alcoholics in my family, mostly men, so yes I believe it's hereditary. I feel the pull of that addiction every time I'm depressed or even out drinking with friends. But, unlike alot of my family members, I am a very strong-willed woman an am perfectly capable of not following in their footsteps. I've seen the damage it can do to a family and I will not let it happen to me.
2007-04-12 22:57:52 · answer #1 · answered by Heather 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I definitely do think it is hereditary but the whole society thing is true too. Each individual has a choice to make. They can either drink like a human once in a while or more than that but not too much. Keep drinking as a want and don't let it turn into a need. I have alcoholics in my family and I have to admit I do love to drink and at times I was a little bit out of control, but isn't everyone when they are young. Partying is the only thing I wanted to do. Now I am married and I have a 7 month old son so I havent been bad in a while. I keep it to a minimum.
2007-04-13 09:26:55 · answer #2 · answered by Crash 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
In some ways it is hereditary. If someone in your family was an alcoholic, you might be more likely to have an alcohol problem. But i think society has a bigger impact on drinking. They say the younger you are when you start drinking, the more apt you are to become an alcoholic. I think the age you start drinking can definitely depend on alcoholism.
2007-04-13 09:17:29 · answer #3 · answered by Paige 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I think alcoholism is inherited because of a lack of certain chemicals the body makes for that feel good feeling. Altho, yes it is a choice but with strength from an early age, not to indulge in drinking or taking drugs. Siblings may or may not inherit the disease just like one inherits dark hair and the other might be blonde.
Im not sure but I think they have been able to prove that there is a chemical missing in the brains of alcoholics and anything like that is always handed down from our parents.
2007-04-12 15:09:34 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Some people with alcoholic parents never touch a drink in their lives. Others, of course, become raging alcoholics. Some are someplace in between. Psychologists believe it's learned behavior, scientists think there's a genetic componenet. Nobody really knows for sure.
Excuse me now while I go get a beer. Do you want one while I'm up?
2007-04-05 14:00:04 · answer #5 · answered by Stimpy 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
About once a year, I hear of someone who has found the "alcoholic gene". It receives a lot of fanfare, then is quietly disproved a few months later.
I believe that nurture plays more of a role than nature, but even if a person is more prone to become an alcoholic, they can't become one without abusing alcohol repeatedly over a period of time.
People like having excuses; "I have a disease" or "It's genetic" is easier to accept than "I have made foolish choices and it's up to me to stop behaving badly."
2007-04-06 04:43:16 · answer #6 · answered by raysny 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
This has actually been proven genetically, but just because you may have the substance abuse gene doesn't mean you'll be an alcoholic. People have free will, it's just that alcoholics have a different physiological response to the alcohol and they really get to a point of no return. But, I agree that people should not use their family as an excuse. If your family has a history of it.......don't drink.
2007-04-05 13:59:44 · answer #7 · answered by Jackie Oh! 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
It can be a combination of both. Alcoholism isn't hereditary for everyone but research has shown that if you come from a family of alcoholics you have a greater chance of becoming one. It doesn't mean that you will become one though.
2007-04-05 13:59:22 · answer #8 · answered by Nico 7 · 2⤊ 1⤋
A question like this is best not asked in P and S since most people don't give serious answers here, it's great. But onto my opinion, I think it's hereditary but not necessarily by genetics. What I mean is that if someone is raised in an alcoholic environment with alcoholic parents then they are at a much greater risk to alcoholism.
2007-04-05 14:03:32 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 4⤋
The exception is fetal alcohol syndrome. Substance abuse is an attempt to dull emotional pain. As long as society adopts a lifestyle that breeds emotional pain, there will always be substance abuse. This is why the police can never combat drugs. Drugs are not the root problem. It is the pain that needs to be destroyed.
2007-04-05 14:03:09 · answer #10 · answered by mythos_equidae 3 · 2⤊ 1⤋