Is Alcholism hereditary?

[kloofnek]

Is Alcholism hereditary?

[ummmm]

I don't think so, not as such. I think being more prone to addiction is hereditary.

[ojread2]

No, but children of alcoholics may have a predisposition to addiction
http://www.alcoholism...olism-hereditary.html

[rowanwitch]

may be a socialisation thing...growing up seeing high consumption giving a distorted view of what is normal

[Sqad]

There is no evidence whatsoever that attitudes toward drinking are hereditary. There are familial, societal, and cultural attitudes toward alcohol consumption but this does not mean that they have a genetic basis.

[snags]

Have you mislaid yours red?

[redman41]

lol lol snags !!!

[charlieuniform3]

I personally think addiction is hereditary, my MIL had a problem it killed her in the end, her father had a problem, my BIL will end up the same way but my wife rarely drinks and perhaps once a year I will see her tiddly.

She thinks poorely of people that drinks to excess

[charlieuniform3]

By the way is this a serious question because I think a couple of the answers below are a bit off!!!

[kloofnek]

Yes,it is a serious question,one of my daughters drinks herself silly,along with her boyfriend who also has a drink problem...not a match made in heaven as it results in rows etc.
Now her father`s family on his father`s side were practically all alcholics,bar one or two...none of her father`s siblings or his mother drank ..

I am very worried that she is also becoming an alcholic,has caused no end of trouble for her,including a six week stay in prison for a drink driving offence.She needs help but it is getting her to do this.
I am at my wits end but at the same time feel so helpless.
We have stood by her through thick and thin,so she had not lacked support.

[boxtops]

It's not hereditary as an addiction, but if you grow up in families where people drink too much, it can be seen as normal behaviour.

[scotman]

I agree with nudgescuffler. I think a tendency to addictive behaviour can be genetic. I have seen that in one of my parent's families.

[rowanwitch]

if its wrecking her life it's likely she already is an alcoholic.. thing is nothing will change until she can admit she has a problem and asks for help All you can do is be supportive when she gets to that point... its hard to give up when it is at the core of your social life too and if her partner drinks to excess it will be a big hurdle to overcome. Hope she comes to her senses soon

[kloofnek]

My daughter did not grow up in alcholic home,her father did.I myself do not drink and her father not in access except on the odd occasion.

I am beginning to think it is the enviornment we live in,on tv,soaps where everyone appears to spend all their time in the local.supermarkets selling discounted wine etc.

When I was a teenager and went to the local dance all,there was only soft drinks available..and we had a good time...what went wrong????

[rowanwitch]

The money machine.... loss of self esteem and self respect, a lack of coping mechanisms probably due to children being too protected from the bad stuff until its too late, poor role models, whole load of things,, probably not the time to be a safety net unless her relationship becomes an abusive one she needs to see that she is in trouble and it will take longer if she is protected from the consequences of her actions

[ladyalex]

I'm not up on the 'evidence base', but it seems to me that there is too much alcoholism in some families for there not to be quite a high genetic component.
Doesn't mean it cannot be fought against, though....

[starone]

My father-in-law was a heavy drinker, so was my step-mother-in-law. Some of the children were also heavy drinkers and one is an out-and-out alcoholic with no hope of recovery. However, my husband did not drink at all because of the distress caused by the heavy drinking in his family. It served as a bad example for him so it can work the other way.

[sandyRoe]

The children of alcoholics learn a bad lesson at a very early age. It's this. The way to deal with the problems that life throws at you is to drink.
I believe that alcoholic parents also fail to provide the nurture that helps children eventually grow to be adults who can deal with life without running to the bottle.

[nohorn]

My father was a hopeless abusive alcoholic. He had 7 children, one was an alcoholic. He had 15 grandchildren and two of them were alcoholic.

I don't think alcoholics/addicts should reproduce. Many of their decendents will become alcholics/addicts and there are enough of them already in the world.
I have children (2) but no grandchildren, thank goodness. At least with this branch, no more alcoholics/addicts will be produced.