Alcohol Abuse: Alcoholism as a Disease Essay -- Health Addiction

The worry of alcohol abuse has been recognized for thousands of years, but only more latterly have we begun to see alcohol addiction as a treatable disorder. match to the authoritative Disease Model of Alcoholism, habitual use of alcohol batch be identified as a disease. Websters Dictionary defines the concept of disease as follows Any departure from health presenting marked symptoms malady illness disorder. Therefore, as many occurrences of alcohol excess provoke such symptoms, it is somewhat graspable that alcoholism is classified as a disease. The Classical Disease Model appears to ply a hopeful option. Treatment and sobriety can allow mickle to lead fulfilling lives. Adjacent to the notion of alcoholism as personal ruin or moral deterioration, the Classical Disease Model appears to be a more desirable concept as it provides a motive for the hard to seek treatment and gain sympathy, minimizing personal guilt. As alcoholism is seen as a progressive and, to an extent, her editary illness for which those afflicted are not accountable, victims avoid being ostracized from society (Jellinek, 1960). Labeling the conundrum as a disease allows the health check profession to take responsibility for the treatment of alcoholism, which puts the problem in a more favourable light than if it were in the hands of psychologists or kindly workers, thus detaching the stigma connected with the problem while it is put on a par with other diseases such as diabetes or cancer. However, critics of the Classical Disease Model believe stigma helps reduce alcohol problems and back up the sousing. Any effort to reduce the stigma which is faced by the drenching will reduce pressures to moderate consumption and could have the additional ... ... the alcoholic of responsibility for their problem. Labeling an alcohol problem as a disease is maybe as stigmatising as the problem itself and could have the effect of dissuading many problem drinkers from seeking help. It focuse s mainly on those whose drinking has become excessive and is thus restrictive. The Classical Disease Model may appear convenient for alcoholics who extremity to deny they have a problem, yet it is likely to do more harm to the individual and the community than good, therefore it is clear to see why, in the 21st Century, the Classical Disease Model is viewed as entirely inadequate. whole kit and caboodle CitedJellinek, E. M. (1960.) The Disease Concept of Alcoholism. New Haven, Conn. College and University Press. Lender, M. E. (1979). Jellineks typology of alcoholism Some historical antecedents. ledger of Studies on Alcohol, 10(5), 361-375.