By: Hayden Field



Alcoholism is a long-term disease influenced by genes and lifestyle with predictable symptoms, and according to the World Health Organization, many of the world’s countries have a significant percentage of people with drinking problems.

In the U.S. alone, death from alcohol-related causes is the third leading preventable cause of death. In 2013, 24.6 percent of people ages 18 or older reported engaging in binge drinking in the previous month. And in 2006, alcohol misuse problems cost the country $223.5 billion – almost three-quarters of which was reportedly related to binge drinking.

But compared to other countries, the U.S. doesn’t look so bad.



In a global roundup of countries with prevalence of alcohol use disorders conducted by the WHO in 2004 — the most recent year for which statistics are available — the U.S. was ranked #48. Interestingly, Italy and Iran recorded the same percentage of males with alcohol abuse problems (0.5) even though alcohol is illegal in the latter. Three countries in the South Pacific — Samoa, the Marshall Islands, and Palau, report no alcohol abuse issues at all — which is curious because another South Pacific nation, tiny Niue, is in the top ten for abuse problems.

Here’s a roundup of the 10 countries with the highest prevalence of alcohol use disorders in adult males and females ages 15 and up, according to the WHO.



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