Rosstat named regions with high “alcohol” mortality. How people die from alcohol

Alcohol consumption provokes psychological and physiological diseases. Alcohol-related mortality statistics indicate that the most important factor in premature death is alcoholism. Mortality counts are approximate. Factors that influence mortality indirectly are not taken into account.

Evidence indicating death from disease is presumptive. The development of the disease can be triggered by many things. The direct influence of alcohol can be discussed in accidents. Statistics try to take into account the obvious facts of death from alcohol.

Eternal holiday or slow path to death

People have been talking about the role of alcohol in premature mortality for a long time. More than half of the country's population dies from alcohol abuse. The ages of deaths range from 20 to 40 years. Death occurs under the influence of alcohol for a number of reasons:

• Poisoning caused by alcohol toxicity.
• Fatal diseases caused by consumption of alcoholic beverages.
• Crimes and suicides committed under the influence of alcohol.

Around the world, up to three million people die each year from the effects of alcohol. Systematic consumption of alcoholic beverages provokes the development of fatal diseases and leads to negative consequences in the functioning of internal organs. The most well-known diseases that result from constant drug intoxication are:

• cirrhosis of the liver;
• cardiomyopathy;
• stroke;
• stomach diseases;
• tuberculosis;
• pancreatitis;
• mental disorders.

Measures taken to combat alcohol addiction do not help reduce the number of alcohol dependent individuals. The number of alcoholics is constantly growing. More than 30 percent of diseases occur in the cardiovascular system. The statistics graph shows a direct relationship between the number of elderly people and mortality in the country. The higher the mortality rate from alcohol, the fewer elderly people there are. With the spread of alcoholism, the average life expectancy is decreasing.

Types of deaths from alcoholism of the population

There has been a high increase in suicide among young people under 30 years of age due to alcohol poisoning. Alcohol becomes a provocateur and pushes a person to do things that he would never do when sober.

Half of voluntary deaths occur due to severe pain that appears over time in every chronic alcoholic. Diseases of the joints and limbs cause unbearable pain. Serious pain is caused by inflamed

Death from alcoholism calculated per 100 thousand people

sciatic nerve.

In an effort to get rid of pain, alcohol addicts uncontrollably take painkillers. Systematic use of painkillers has the opposite effect - the sensation of pain begins to intensify and become higher than what it was before taking the drug. Overdose of analgesics is a common case of poisoning leading to resuscitation. The psyche of chronic drunkards cannot stand it due to lack of control, and with the next toxicosis, the alcoholic decides to commit suicide.

The suicide rate has been rising in recent years from deaths due to alcohol poisoning due to social inequality. The economic crisis has created a large number of unemployed people. As a result of troubles with income and subsequently in the family, the level of psychological tension increases, the population finds a way out of it by drinking alcohol. Lack of funds for booze leads to absorption poor quality goods, bought "underground". Poisoning from questionable alcohol is inevitable.

The leader in the increase in mortality from alcoholism in 2015 was alcohol overdose. From alcohol poisoning, a person ends up in intensive care, gets hit by a car, commits suicide, or falls asleep from an overdose of strong alcohol.

There has been an increase in mortality from lung disease - cancer. Most sick patients are diagnosed at the second stage of alcoholism. Most diseases at this stage are already advanced, half of them have irreversible consequences. Lung cancer is a common disease among middle-aged men who have the bad habit of smoking.

Alcoholics of the second and third stages have liver diseases. Mortality occurs from the reluctance to see a drug addiction doctor and begin treatment by getting rid of alcohol addiction. Drinking leads to a common disease - diabetes. People do not die from this disease. Death comes from complications caused by diabetes: the effect on the walls of blood vessels causes atherosclerotic plaques. The vessel closes and this causes a stroke or myocardial infarction.

Alcohol consumption in the world is becoming one of the primary problems in a sufficiently large number of countries. The destructive addiction is spreading on all continents. Mortality from alcoholism, according to statistics, reaches 2.5 million people per year worldwide.

Consequences of alcoholism

The negative consequences of addiction affect not only drinking people, but also on their environment. And above all, families suffer. Alcohol is the cause of many illegal and unpleasant activities. Up to half of all crimes are committed under the influence of alcohol, families break up, and the younger generation suffers.

Most crimes, car accidents with serious consequences, cases of violence, serious harm to health, and so on are committed under the influence of alcohol. Women with alcohol addiction often give birth to defective offspring. The educational influence of drinking parents has an extremely negative impact on children, and the family’s financial support also suffers. Abandoned in such families, they often become homeless.

Alcoholism also has a negative impact on society. It can cause disruptions in the economy and even lead to economic and political crises.

Addiction to alcohol negatively affects literally all human organs, leading to serious damage and death of the body, becoming the cause of mental illness and loss of appearance, premature aging.

Alcoholism in Europe

According to established tradition, there is no concept of “alcoholism” and no records are kept of such patients. Europeans call such people “having problems with alcohol” and they are recruited according to different estimates, about 10 -20%. Therefore, it is not possible to provide statistical data on this problem.

Europeans drink the most in the world. The conclusion suggests itself that in countries with high alcohol consumption, the standard and life expectancy should decline. However, this is not confirmed by statistical data.

The transition from alcohol use to alcohol abuse is influenced by various factors, such as:

The consequences of drinking in Europe

• comfort of living in the country;
• alcohol consumption culture;
• traditional types of alcohol consumed in the country;
• the prevailing attitude towards those suffering from this vice.

About the social roots of alcoholism

The generally accepted opinion is that representatives of low-status social strata with low income and standard of living are susceptible to the harmful effects of alcoholism. This implies a behavioral reaction to a failed life and dissatisfaction with one’s own situation. Of course, this kind of deviation also occurs among quite successful people, top-level politicians, and show business stars. But there are few mass phenomena of this kind in high circles. The very standard of living, communication, and life tasks require a person to constantly be in good shape and in adequate condition.

The culture of drinking alcohol in Europe does not imply an end in itself, but only accompaniment of the process of communication with others, therefore this level does not imply excessive consumption. In addition, the process of drinking alcohol occurs in public places - bars, pubs, restaurants, which also requires behavior of a certain level.

The level of prices for alcohol, which is several times higher than that in Russia, is also important. This applies not only to elite drinks, but also to ordinary vodka. This approach does not encourage excessive alcohol consumption.

Any type of alcohol contributes to the development of alcohol dependence, including beer, wine, and, especially, strong drinks, which are traditional in many territories. They affect alcoholism most aggressively in relatively short periods of time.

Here is a comparison with drinking wine Moldova. Having the highest level of alcohol consumption, it is characterized by the highest life expectancy.

Europe is characterized by a sensitive attitude towards people suffering from alcoholism. They try to involve them in public life, help them find a job, take a worthy place in society, and start a family. Alcoholics Anonymous societies are widespread, helping to provide psychological relief to addicted people, making it easier for them to fully return to society.

In general, it can be noted that Europeans are not concerned about the problem of alcoholism. They are more concerned about the problem of curing somatic diseases, which are also one of the consequences of a morbid addiction to alcohol.

Alcoholism in our country

The belief that Russians drink more than other countries is erroneous. Yes, they drink a lot, but there are many countries where it is more common. This opinion is formed for various reasons, including due to a number of specific features of the passion for alcohol in our country:

Alcoholism and drunkenness in numbers

Regarding this phenomenon, it is impossible to speak with certainty about the correctness of the data. In many countries there is no official registration of persons suffering from this defect.

And where such records are kept, it cannot be said that they are fully objective, because not everyone is registered with the relevant medical institutions, a significant part is not taken into account in such statistics.

It has been established that in communities without restrictions on the free sale of alcohol, the number of people wishing to receive medical help due to alcoholism is about 2%. Moreover, this figure is stable within the statistical error.

The number of “those who have problems,” that is, those who drink regularly but have not yet contacted doctors, is about 10 - 15%, and this figure is also stable for most countries.

For Russia, the number of people registered will be about 2.8 million people, latent alcoholics, respectively, 15 - 20 million.

Accordingly, in the EU countries this will be 1 million and 50 - 70 million people.

Alcohol rating by country

In the ranking of alcoholic countries, European countries occupy the first places, however, their attitude towards alcoholic beverages is ambiguous. Using data from 2014, we can identify some specific features. Let's pay attention to the top five countries leading in the use of alcoholic drinks:

Table 1

The top ten drinkers are the same.

Everyone knows that alcoholics do not live long. They die from surrogate poisoning or complications dangerous diseases, obtained as a result of regular libations. But pathologists also ascertain death from alcohol intoxication in young people who had no health problems during their lifetime. With an increase in the concentration of ethyl alcohol in the blood, it is impossible to predict how the body will react to poisoning. Often, when consuming even a minimal dose of alcohol, a person needs urgent health care.

Why you can die from alcohol intoxication

Alcohol intoxication is a condition of the human body after consuming any amount of ethyl alcohol. Many factors influence the degree of poisoning. For some, a glass of beer drunk in the evening can become a problem and cause a painful hangover, but for others, even a bottle of vodka will not cause any significant harm. According to experts, this phenomenon is not permanent - the mechanism of self-destruction has been launched. A little time will pass - and the only glass drunk strong alcohol will cause death.

Ethanol refers to psychoactive substances that depress the functioning of the central nervous system nervous system. Regardless of the amount of alcohol consumed, the following body functions are impaired:

• behavioral.
• physiological.
• psychological.

The lethal dose of pure ethyl alcohol for an adult varies from 250 to 400 g. This difference is due to many factors:

1. State of human health. For a weakened and exhausted body, even a small dose of ethanol can cause fatal alcohol poisoning.
2. The quantity and quality of food in the stomach. Products with high content carbohydrates (potatoes, cereal porridge) and fats ( butter, lard) are able to absorb a certain amount of ethanol and delay death from alcohol poisoning.
3. Time. If a lethal dose of ethyl alcohol is taken within a few hours, then the death of a person is inevitable. As the time period increases, there is a chance to save the victim from intoxication.
4. Addiction. The dose that is lethal for a moderate or light drinker is daily norm. Such citizens extremely rarely die from acute ethanol intoxication. The cause of their death is the chronic stage of intoxication or the use of methanol, a highly toxic poison.
5. Age. An elderly man drinks a bottle on an empty stomach. strong beer may cause coma.

People often die from alcohol intoxication because their bodies lack the gene responsible for the processing of alcohol by liver cells. These are the inhabitants of the Far North and the African continent.

Everyone knows well that ethyl alcohol destroys brain cells and internal organs. Under him harmful influence the mucous membranes become thinner and ulcerated, the work is disrupted genitourinary system, irreversible deformations of the kidney tissue occur. But why death occurs from alcohol poisoning has not been reliably established. The heart simply stops beating, stops, and the person dies.

Outwardly absolutely healthy young people who drink little and play sports die from intoxication with a small dose of ethyl alcohol. Already at the autopsy, the pathologist discovers the disease of cardio-vascular system. This pathology could be successfully corrected by drug treatment or surgery during life.

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61 years old

Pathologists often find it difficult to determine the cause of death from alcohol intoxication. Cardiac arrest could occur as a result of a complication heart disease or the heart stops beating after drinking a large dose of ethanol.

Even a small amount of drinking alcohol can cause fatal poisoning. This situation occurs when you want to take a hot bath. One glass of strong beer, a weakened body, a hot bath - and the risk of acute intoxication increases many times over.

What are the stages of alcohol intoxication?

At any stage of ethanol intoxication, a person can fall into an alcoholic coma. If he is not provided with emergency medical care, then within a few hours this condition will lead to death from alcohol poisoning. The main symptoms of coma are similar to those of a stroke, so doctors often carry out additional diagnostics to separate pathologies. The smell of alcohol on the breath does not serve as evidence of alcohol intoxication, since it can be felt when exhaling in patients with certain chronic diseases. Experts distinguish the types of coma listed below.

• Superficial (No. 1). Patients are unconscious, but when inhaling ammonia vapor they react by moving their arms, trying to remove the irritant. The destructive processes occurring in the body cause unbearable pain to a person, and temporary dilation of the pupils occurs. At this stage, patients can often be saved by gastric lavage and the installation of droppers with glucose solutions, mineral salts and drugs to restore damaged liver cells.
• Superficial (No. 2). Patients practically do not react to irritation of the olfactory receptors with an ammonia solution. The pupils are constricted, the muscles are completely relaxed. To bring patients to consciousness at this stage, serious resuscitation measures will be required to restore the functioning of the cardiovascular system.
• Deep. There is no reaction to all stimuli. The patient does not respond to ammonia, does not experience pain from exposure to internal and external factors. A person is diagnosed with respiratory and heart failure. In most cases, doctors pronounce death within a few hours.

When making a diagnosis, it is very important to determine the amount of alcohol consumed and its strength. This is necessary to calculate the required doses of pharmacological drugs. An alcoholic coma usually does not last more than 24 hours - if a day after the start of treatment the heart rhythm is not restored, then the prognosis for recovery is extremely unfavorable.

Often, with alcohol intoxication, a person does not have time to be hospitalized. A sunken tongue causes breathing to stop during sleep. There are often cases when The cause of death is the entry of vomit from the stomach into Airways . An unconscious person dies within minutes.

If there is a malfunction in the cardiovascular system, sudden surges may occur blood pressure. If the patient has previously been diagnosed with increased renal or arterial hypertension, then this situation is extremely dangerous and can result in a hypertensive crisis. As alcohol intoxication increases, blood pressure begins to drop sharply to dangerous levels, and the person falls into a deep coma.

Dangerous symptoms of alcohol intoxication

Doctors distinguish primary and secondary signs of alcohol intoxication. A person with poor health must be given first aid already at the initial stage of poisoning, when there is still no sign of coma. Ethanol quickly spreads throughout the body, damaging tissues and internal organs. The amount of alcohol consumed is directly dependent on the severity of the symptoms. Primary signs of alcohol intoxication:

1. Profuse sweating, perspiration, slight chills.
2. Pleasant relaxation, increased psycho-emotional arousal, a feeling of permissiveness.
3. Reasoning is categorical, movements are impetuous.
4. A blush appears on the cheeks, sometimes the whole face turns red.
5. Frequent urination occurs.

At this stage of intoxication, death occurs extremely rarely. This usually happens in cases of unjustified risk under the influence of alcohol consumed.

For secondary symptoms of intoxication to appear, for some it will take one glass of vodka, and for others even five will not be enough. This stage of poisoning is characterized by the following symptoms:

1. Aggression appears or, conversely, the person becomes sleepy.
2. Memory, vision and hearing deteriorate.
3. Coordination of movements is impaired.
4. The person is poorly oriented in space.
5. Nausea, vomiting, and stomach pain appear.

If first aid is not provided at the secondary stage, alcoholic coma and death may occur.. Irreversible destruction of brain cells responsible for the regulation of vital processes occurs.

First aid

Unless a person is an alcoholic, it is usually clear at first glance that he is near death. First you need to call ambulance, and then try to save the victim:

1. You will need to induce vomiting so that alcohol stops being absorbed into the blood.. The person needs to be turned on his side and pressed on the root of the tongue.
2. It is necessary to monitor the victim before the doctor arrives so that he does not choke on vomit.
3. You can vigorously rub a person's ears and palms to normalize blood circulation.

To avoid fatal alcohol intoxication, you need to follow a few simple rules: give up beer and spirits, maintain a healthy lifestyle and undergo regular medical examinations.

Excessive consumption of alcoholic beverages causes significant damage to health, leading to disability and mental disorders. Addiction negatively affects the social, economic environment and society as a whole. But death from alcoholism is much more terrifying. According to statistics, over 3 million people die from this disease every year in the world. This is approximately 6% of all deaths.

Death occurs as a result of cardiac arrest, failure of damaged organs, injuries, accidents, and suicides. Alcoholics rarely live past 50 and die painfully and slowly. Before death, there is complete degradation of the personality, the patient cannot eat, he often feels sick, vomits, his heart, head, stomach, all muscles and body hurt.

Some statistics

• 16% of alcoholics die from liver cirrhosis;
• 25% of cases are accidental poisonings;
• 18% of addicts die from cardiovascular pathologies (alcoholic cardiomyopathy);
• 13% of deaths are associated with exacerbation of chronic diseases and organ failure;
• 28% are due to accidents.

IN different countries The percentage of causes of death in alcoholism is different. In Russia, men aged 20–69 years are more likely to die from accidental alcohol poisoning and cardiomyopathy. The third place is occupied by cirrhosis of the liver. In total, about half a million citizens die every year. According to Rospotrebnadzor, alcoholism is the cause of death for about 30% of men and 15% of women.

Causes of death

Alcohol, even in minimal doses, has a negative impact on human health. Ethyl alcohol damages all organs and systems, causes metabolic disorders, and increases the risk of cancer. Within 10 years of starting to drink alcohol, 69% of people become addicted. Almost all of them are not aware of their illness and do not want to get rid of their addiction.

Mental and physical dependence progresses quite quickly. It takes at least 2 years for a person to become an alcoholic and a maximum for 17 years. At the last stage of alcoholism, serious personality degradation is observed, the patient has an unkempt appearance. appearance, red swollen face, thin emaciated body. With cirrhosis of the liver, the skin becomes yellow; if ascites occurs, the abdomen swells.

A painful condition, frequent vomiting, hallucinations, and withdrawal symptoms do not stop the alcoholic, and he continues to drink. At the last stage, a glass of vodka is enough to get drunk. But alcoholics do not know limits and drink until they pass out. As a result, alcohol intoxication or exacerbation of one of the chronic diseases one day ends in death. The cause of death is different for every alcoholic. It is impossible to predict why it will happen.

Accidents

The most common cause of death in Russia. State severe intoxication and withdrawal syndrome lead to various behavioral disorders, loss of self-control, and decreased self-preservation instincts. As a result, the risk of death increases. Death comes:

• as a result of drowning, fire, freezing;
• from injury incompatible with life (fall, domestic or other);
• in a drunken fight, traffic accident;
• an alcoholic commits suicide.

Alcohol inhibits the cells of the cerebral cortex and has a false warming and analgesic effect. An alcoholic has no control over his emotions. He may fall and hit his head, fall asleep on the street in the cold, cross the road in the wrong place, or even worse, get behind the wheel while intoxicated. Considering that drunkenness is not encouraged by society, and many people treat alcoholics with disdain, one cannot count on outside help in such cases.

Poisoning

Official statistics list alcohol poisoning as the cause of 3% of all deaths in Russia. But the true state of affairs is even worse, because doctors often indicate a cardiovascular diagnosis on the death certificate. Severe alcohol intoxication causes heart failure. Irrhythmic contractions lead to insufficient blood supply to internal organs and sudden coronary death. With large doses of alcohol, death occurs within a few minutes.

Separately, it is worth mentioning poisoning with low-quality booze and surrogates. In the final stages of alcoholism, patients, due to lack of funds, are forced to buy cheap booze, which is often made from the most harmful, toxic ingredients. Alcohol poisoning develops instantly even with small doses.

The lethal amount of alcohol is different for each person. It is important to take into account age, weight, health status, and drinking tolerance. It matters whether a person has a snack or not and with what and over what period of time he drinks alcohol. For a healthy, non-drinking man weighing 70 kg, a dose of 300 ml of pure ethanol (750 ml of strong alcoholic beverage or 6 liters of beer) drunk over 5 hours is considered fatal. To a drinking man for a fatal outcome, 600 ml of ethanol will be required, i.e. 2 times more.

Sometimes death occurs as a result of mixing drugs and alcohol. This happens especially often when taking sedatives, hypnotics and alcohol together. The person falls into a drunken sleep, during which vomiting begins due to intoxication. The masses enter the respiratory tract, and the patient dies from suffocation without waking up.

Accompanying illnesses

Statistics show that alcoholics mostly die from pathologies of internal organs. Alcohol abuse leads to the development of more than 200 diseases. Often the damage progresses slowly. Month after month, year after year, the organs cope with their function worse and worse until they stop working altogether. Less commonly, death occurs as a result of acute deficiency, for example, when drinking alcohol during an exacerbation or when an infection occurs.

List of diseases that lead to death in alcoholism:

• cardiomyopathy (myocardial dystrophy);
• sudden heart attack;
• cirrhosis of the liver;
• acute and chronic pancreatitis;
• gastritis;
• peptic ulcer of the stomach and duodenum;
• oncological diseases;
• neurological disorders (polyneuropathy, polyneuritis);
• alcoholic delirium (acute Gaiet-Wernicke encephalopathy);
• epilepsy;
• severe pneumonia, tuberculosis.

The most vulnerable organs to alcohol are the mucous membranes digestive tract, brain cells, liver, blood vessels and heart, kidneys. Moreover, a failure in the operation of one link in the chain leads to disruption of the entire system. Without treatment, diseases accumulate like a snowball. At the moment when the most damaged organ begins to fail, all the others are also less viable. This is why addicts are not given transplants.

Alcoholism is a global problem today. More people die from the disease than from wars or AIDS. The highest percentage of deaths is observed in the 20–59 year old category (55%). Drinking at a young age leads to disorientation in society. Alcoholics harm not only themselves, but also society. If they do not want to be treated, many die in poverty, loneliness, and deeply ill people.

According to statistics, more people die from causes related to alcohol consumption than from military conflicts, viruses and AIDS: according to WHO, mortality from alcohol is about 4%, that is, every year humanity loses 2.5 million lives. Moreover, the figure increases every year, as there is an increase in alcoholism throughout the world. As prosperity improves, new drinkers are emerging in Asian and African countries, and cases of binge drinking are increasingly being recorded in Europe. Unfortunately, an alarming situation is also observed in Russia and post-Soviet countries. In the territory of the former Soviet Union, every fifth person dies from alcohol-related causes. In addition, many people die from the consequences of smoking.

A little history

The growth of alcohol addiction among the Russian population began in the 17th century, when wine and alcohol began to be imported into the country. Before this, people drank mead, horseradish, mash and other drinks, the strength of which did not exceed 10°. Heavy libations, much less drunkenness, were not welcomed in society. Such amateurs were condemned and considered lost people.

The state took the new type of alcohol into its monopoly: only it could produce and sell drinks. Previously, alcohol was produced by the population only for personal needs; it was not on sale. In addition to the ban on independent production, the state limited the number of establishments where one could eat. In their place, many taverns were opened, selling exclusively alcohol; they did not serve food. The result of such a policy was not slow to be felt: money flowed into the treasury, but at the same time, in the shortest possible time, there was a mass alcoholization of a large number of people.

Realizing how this could turn out, the state began to take measures to reduce it. But at the same time, it did not give up its monopoly position, continuing to sell strong drinks and get the population drunk.

At the beginning of the last century, a long-term plan for the development of the country was developed in Russia, and grandiose reforms were outlined. The government was going to make the state a world leader; for this it was necessary to make a breakthrough in science, production, and education. For the plan to work, a decree was passed in 1914 introducing prohibition.

Over the years of its operation, the number of drinkers has decreased and the level of alcoholism has decreased. The country confidently followed the path of transformation until the war began, and then 1917. Despite subsequent events, Prohibition remained in effect until 1925. It was canceled in order to fill the treasury with money and lift the country out of ruin.

Alcohol became available again. Perhaps this decision was influenced by I. Stalin, who did not see a big problem in drinking alcoholic beverages, and was himself a fan of wine.

During the Great Patriotic War, soldiers were given “People’s Commissar” 100 g to maintain their spirit, as well as as encouragement. The post-war years were marked by an increase in alcoholism: after a terrible war, people tried to forget its horrors.

A new round of growth in alcoholism occurred in the 90s. Widespread unemployment, closure of enterprises, impoverishment of the population. Not only adults, but also children and youth drank themselves to death en masse. As a result, Russia came out on top in the consumption and development of alcohol addiction among the CIS countries. This was also facilitated by the entry of foreign beer companies into the market. Aggressive propaganda of intoxicating drinks introduced young people to beer alcoholism.

Due to the fact that due to the anti-alcohol campaign carried out in the USSR, the production of high-quality alcohol in the country decreased, underground dealers filled the market with surrogate drinks. During these years, a sharp increase in population mortality from causes related to alcohol consumption was recorded.

Alcoholism and mortality in Russia

The problem of alcoholism in Russia, which began in the 17th century, still remains painful and not fully resolved, despite periodic attempts to overcome it.

According to statistics, today the country ranks fifth in the ranking in terms of alcohol consumption per capita. However, the figures cause skepticism among experts who consider them to be greatly underestimated.

They justify their opinion by the fact that only official information was taken into account in the data, and yet there are many clandestine producers and distributors of alcoholic beverages operating in the country. Experts believe that if we take this amendment into account, we can say that Russia occupies a dismal first place.

Over the past 20-25 years, there has been a surge in alcoholism in children and youth, as well as people under 30 years of age. Dependence on beer has emerged, and the age at which minors began drinking alcohol has become sharply younger. Today, 11-13 year olds already know the taste of alcoholic beverages, and many of them have already developed an addiction. The situation is aggravated by the high prevalence of smoking among young people.

This situation did not arise overnight; it was caused by the upheavals in the country that occurred at the end of the twentieth century. We still feel the consequences of that state of affairs.

Due to the anti-alcohol policy undertaken by M. Gorbachev, the country was flooded with low-quality and counterfeit alcoholic drinks. In addition to markets and dubious points of sale, they began to be sold in stores. Illegal sales in the late 90s. amounted to about 60%. In this regard, there followed an explosive increase alcohol poisoning with fatal outcomes. They exceeded European indicators by 65 times.

Since the beginning of the 90s. The demographic situation in Russia began to deteriorate: mortality rates exceeded the birth rate. The threat of population extinction has become a pressing problem for the country. Despite the measures taken and the first successes in overcoming depopulation, the issue remains pressing today. As before, a third of the total number of deaths is associated with the use of alcoholic beverages, and this is 30-46% depending on the region of the country.

Alcohol abuse contributes to the increase in crimes committed. According to official data, up to 80% of murders in the world are committed for this reason. In Russia, this figure is higher than mentioned and amounts to almost 68% of the total number of recorded murder cases.

Having analyzed Russian statistics, experts revealed the reason for the rampant crime in 1998-2003: it was provoked by an increase in the production and consumption of alcoholic beverages. In 2005, the situation improved slightly as measures were taken to limit the production of alcohol. The number of crimes committed while drunk has decreased significantly.

In addition, experts determined that the least number of people died in 1998, 2013, 2014, the peak of mortality was recorded in 2002-2004.

Current situation

The specificity of alcohol consumption in Russia is that in the country the consumption of strong alcohol predominates over low alcohol drinks- the so-called northern type. At various periods, drinking vodka and other strong alcohol reached 70-80%, which is several times more compared to other countries. It is strong alcohol that contributes to the accelerated development of addiction, an increase in the concentration of alcohol in the body, severe destruction of physical and mental health. A large number of poisoning is also associated with this factor.

According to A. Nemtsov, in the country:

• The majority of violent deaths occur while intoxicated.
• Fatal outcomes from alcoholic cirrhosis of the liver account for almost 70% of the total number of patients.
• Every year, 500 thousand people die prematurely.
• Alcohol abuse causes various diseases, life expectancy is decreasing, the health of the younger generation is deteriorating, more and more children are being born with developmental defects due to the fault of drinking parents.

In addition to alcohol, smoking also aggravates the demographic situation in the country. If you look at how things are in the world, it turns out that one person dies every 5 seconds on the planet from a bad habit. The same situation is observed in the Russian Federation. An analysis of statistics for previous years shows that over the 20-year period from the 80s to the 2000s, smoking killed about 6 million people.

Today the pace is no lower: every year the country’s population loses from 350 to 450 thousand people. And this exceeds the figures of the 90s. almost twice!

What could be more eloquent in arguments about the dangers of smoking than numbers? Unfortunately, a false understanding of the image of a real man has developed in the country. For now it is associated only with a cigarette. But doctors testify: every second person who likes to smoke the stronger sex does not live to see retirement. The average age of those who died from smoking is 40-45 years old, that is, people in the prime of life and opportunities. Women are not far behind in their desire to smoke.

The country is suffering demographic and economic losses. Every cigarette lover sooner or later develops diseases caused by nicotine. Accordingly, the state spends money on their treatment and pays for sick leave. During therapy, a person does not fulfill his official duties, does not work at all or partially. Passive smoking also causes great damage. It also harms the health of others.

Some small calculations show that of the 2 million annual deaths, 18% are due to smoking-related causes. Alas, threatening warnings on packages, taboos in public places and a ban on sales to minors have not yet had the desired effect. For now, changes are happening a little slowly. Although it can be stated that thanks to the measures taken: restrictions, fines and smoking bans in restaurants, bars, transport, etc., the situation has clearly moved for the better.

Mortality from alcoholism and smoking was largely inherited from the 90s. This period turned out to be so difficult that it affected the lives of many generations. The consequences still reverberate today. But it seems that the situation, albeit slightly, is changing. Today it is no longer fashionable to drink and smoke; it is much more prestigious to play sports and take care of your health. Every person must realize what bad habits can lead to. Many still have a chance to stop and change their lives for the better.