Alcohol's impact on society

In many ways, alcohol is more harmful to individuals and society than many illegal drugs such as heroin, crack cocaine and methamphetamine. That was the conclusion recently of a study funded by Britain's Centre for Crime and Justice Studies and published in the medical journal Lancet.

Some may have found the study surprising, or even alarming. Alcohol consumption is legal in all states, with each choosing to regulate it in its own way. But really, no one should be surprised to learn that such a widely used drug can be extremely damaging if abused.

The Associated Press story about the study said alcohol scored high in part because it is so widely used, but also because of its social costs. Various studies through the years have tried to attach a dollar amount to those costs, but these end up being estimates, at best. They run into the billions of dollars yearly and run the gamut from medical treatments for alcohol-related syndromes that vary widely and include premature births and other neonatal problems, to auto accidents. Drunken driving statistics are compiled yearly. In Utah last year, 16.4 percent of all fatalities were related to alcohol.

But it's hard to put a price tag on the marriages that fail, the jobs and careers that are lost and the impulsive and dangerous acts committed under alcohol's influence that otherwise would not have happened. As the study noted, alcohol abuse affects virtually all organ systems and is a factor in a higher percentage of crimes than are other drugs.

That is about all that can be said in response to such a study. As experts have noted, the world is not going to react by making alcohol consumption illegal. Its use is far too ubiquitous for that, and most of its users do not abuse it.

However, the study also should not be used as an excuse to try to legalize other harmful drugs under the notion that they are less harmful than a legal one. In fact, the study listed several drugs more lethal than alcohol. Just because one drug is somewhat socially acceptable because of its history and widespread use, it makes little sense to want to legalize other harmful mind-altering substances, as well.

What does make sense is to find ways to target the abusers of alcohol and to limit ways it can be abused. Utah has wisely adopted a state-controlled liquor distribution system that limits liquor licenses and allows most bottled drinks to be sold only through state-run stores. This, combined with education campaigns and a majority culture that abstains from alcohol, has minimized its harmful effects here.

Even so, Utah Highway Patrol officers made 87 DUI-related arrests during a four-hour concentrated Halloween-weekend effort late Saturday and early Sunday. It was another reminder that many people do not take alcohol's potentially harmful effect seriously.