Alcoholism: The Facts (The ^AFacts Series)

By Donald W. Goodwin

Book Overview

Most murders happen on Saturday nights because that's when most people have been drinking. Among sons of alcoholics, 10 out of 55 are receiving treatment for alcoholism by age 30. Alexander the Great was reported to be under the influence of alcohol when he burned the royal palace at Persepolis in 330 BC.

This completely updated and revised new edition of Dr. Goodwin's successful Alcoholism: The Facts deals with all aspects of the world's number one drug problem. Written for those with alcohol problems and those who share their lives, the book focuses not only on the clinical aspects of alcoholism, but covers also social and psychological problems experienced by alcoholics and their relatives and friends. Avoiding all technical jargon, Dr. Goodwin informs readers about known and unknown facts of alcoholism, what the latest research results mean, and how to get help for themselves, a relative, or a friend. There is information on alcoholic beverages, alcohol in the body, risk factors, heredity, psychosocial theories, specific treatments, Alcoholics Anonymous, and much more.

The book corrects many of the misconceptions about alcoholism. While newspapers are full of stories about an increase of alcoholism among teenagers and women, this is impossible to prove, since nobody know how many were alcoholic in the past. While alcohol is widely believed to cause brain damage, this has also not been proven.

Based on hard scientific data, written in a clear style, Alcoholism: The Facts is the ideal resource for everyone concerned about this illness.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0192623389
• ISBN13: 9780192623386
• Release Date: July 1994
• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Length: 188 Pages
• Weight: 0.41 lbs.
• Dimensions: 7.7" x 0.5" x 5.1"

Customer Reviews

A superb and accessible look at a debilitating disorder.

Goodwin's accessible, effortless style, which he used so well in previous editions, carries the reader nicely through the intricacies of one of the world's most popular drugs and its associated disorders. Excerpts from literature and case studies provide a superb feel for the phenomenology of addiction. Numerous entertaining quotes appear from everyone from Kissinger to Humpty Dumpty. Goodwin provides a thorough look at alcohol itself, the problems associated with excess consumption, common theories designed to account for these problems, and many of the available treatments. Through simple explanations of the correct interpretations of available data, Goodwin not only provides a great deal of meaningful information, but he teaches the reader to become a good consumer of research. This book is refreshingly scientific and lacks the horribly moralistic tone many books on this topic take.