Monday, November 11, 2013

When did people become aware that alcohol is dangerous and stop drinking as frequently?


The timeline of alcohol starts back as far as 3500 BC. In the beginning, wine was the main beverage since water was less sanitary. The earliest record of wine was 3500 BC. In 2000 BC, an Egyptian priest forbids his pupils from going to taverns because “Thou art degraded like beasts.” In the old and new testaments in the bible, wine is mentioned many times, it was used in rejoice, and in suffering. In Babylon, in 450 wines were used to heal before medicines were used. In 1785, there are the first reports of alcoholism and its negative effects. In 1792, alcohol was taxed creating the Whiskey Rebellion. In 1884, laws are started to teach against alcohol in schools. In 1917, it was declared that by not drinking alcohol, one could avoid syphilis. The Prohibition Act was passed in 1919.  President Roosevelt repealed this act in 1933. According to the CDC, 51.5% of people 18 and older are regular drinkers, meaning they have had 12 or more drinks in a year. There have been 15990 deaths due to alcohol caused liver disease in 2010 and 25692 alcohol-induced deaths such as accidents and homicides.



Chelsea Grzeskowiak

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