The Absence of Alcoholism

Italy is the capital of wine, producing almost 20% of the world’s wine and being the third largest consumer of wine worldwide (Aigrain, 2001). Beyond wine, alcohol is an important part of Italian culture from childhood to adulthood. Italians simply love to drink, but the consequences of heavy drinking, such as death due to alcohol poisoning and alcohol addiction, are absent in Italy. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 7.4% of the U.S. population suffers from an alcohol use disorder, compared to only 1% in Italy. While the U.S. does consume more alcohol per capita, this difference in alcohol use disorders is more than simply the amount of alcohol consumed (WHO, 2014).

When I experience the night life of Florence, I often see Italians enjoying their time at the bars, but it is rare to see an Italian stumbling down the streets with a bottle in hand. In one of the previous blog posts by Julia Stone, she stated how one of the several reasons for the low obesity rate in Italy is the culture of moderation. Italians understand that eating a croissant stuffed with hazelnut spread or drinking a few glasses of wine is perfectly acceptable – as long as these behaviors happen on occasion and the quantity you consume is reasonable. WHO statistics highlight the drinking differences between Italian and U.S. cultures, stating only 4.2% of Italians binge drink regularly, whereas this number jumps to 16.9% in the U.S (WHO, 2014).

This practice of moderation begins with parents putting a few drops of wine into their child’s water to give them a small taste, and as the years go by the allotted dose increases as the child progresses in their alcohol education (Allamani, Beccaria, & Voller, 2010). From an early age, Italians learn that wine and any type of alcohol is more of a tasting experience and less of a drug. In my personal experience, the U.S. tends to emphasize the drug component of alcohol from an early age. In the years before entering college, I participated in school-run programs which emphasized the risks of drinking and encouraged abstinence from alcohol. While alcohol is undoubtedly a drug, the way in which it is presented to children is one of the most startling differences between our cultures. Perhaps one way to reduce the rates of alcohol addiction and the diseases caused by drinking is to change how we present alcohol to younger generations.

This post was written by Laura Long, a junior at Purdue University. Laura is majoring in Psychological Sciences and Applied Statistics, and hopes to continue her education through a graduate program in Industrial-Organizational Psychology.

Aigrain, P. (2001). State of the vitiviniculture world market. Bulletin De L'OIV, (855-856), 323-355.

Allamani, A., Beccaria, F., & Voller, F. (2010). The puzzle of Italian drinking. Nordic Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, 27(5), 465-478.

WHO. (2014). Global Status Report on Alcohol and Health 2014. Geneva: World Health Organization.