Pull up a map of liquor stores in New York City. In Manhattan they are almost wall to wall. Queens and Brooklyn are abundantly supplied with stores. On Staten Island and Long Island, there starts to be some space between the vendors. New Yorkers definitely like their drinks.

The problem is that all this availability contributes to many people in the city becoming heavy drinkers. Heavy drinking is highest on Manhattan (22% of the population drink heavily), followed by Staten Island and Queens (15%), Brooklyn (13%) and the Bronx (11%). Each year, more than 135,000 people living in New York City enter addiction recovery centers to recover from alcoholism and 1,500 New Yorkers die from alcohol-related causes. While white New Yorkers are more often alcohol-dependent, African-American or Latino New Yorkers are more likely to be hospitalized or die as a result of heavy drinking. It costs New York City $213 annually to deal with alcohol-related emergency room and hospital costs.

State-wide, four out of ten adults who enter treatment for addiction list alcohol as the drug as their primary drug of addiction. The average across the state for heavy drinkers is about 15% of the New York population. Also statewide, nearly nine thousand people were killed or injured in alcohol-related traffic accidents. In 329 of these cases, a fatality occurred, 175 of the people killed were the drunk driver himself or herself. The great majority of people dying in these accidents were young men between 18 and 34 years of age. Sadly, 425 of the people killed or injured were children.

Admissions to Alcoholism Treatment are Highest in the Bronx and Manhattan

Rates of admission to alcohol recovery programs in the Bronx are two-and-a-half times what they are in Queens, which has the lowest rate of admissions.

Overall, the New York City rate of admissions is 169 per 10,000 population.

Breakdown by Borough:

Bronx:                     265

Manhattan:           229

Staten Island:        150

Brooklyn:               148

Queens:                 96

Reference: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1925025/table/T2/

New York State Fights Back Against Flavored High-Alcohol Malt Liquors

It’s the latest rage in some circles of young drinkers: Alcoholic malt beverages averaging 12 % alcohol (beer is usually 4%), containing caffeine which can increase the effect of the alcohol, and fruity flavoring which tends to mask the strength of the alcohol. Brand names include Four Loko and Joose. Downing one oversized can of Four Loko is about the same as chugging an entire six-pack of beer. Law enforcement agencies are starting to combine their efforts to fight back against this product that seems to be marketed to young drinkers.

An investigation by New York State law enforcement agencies turned up these problems created by these drinks:

• In just one week, four minors were rushed to emergency rooms in Queens with alcohol poisoning.
• The University of Buffalo reported 821 alcohol violations on the campus, many of which involved Four Loko consumption in residence halls. Between January and March 2011, there had been 16 alcohol overdoses.
• The Downstate Poison Control Center received reports on seven cases of people being taken to hospitals after suffering alcohol poisoning after drinking Four Loko. Five were underage.
• An underage volunteer went into 23 liquor stores in the Bronx to buy Four Loko and other alcoholic beverages. He was successful in 17 of them.

Ironically, Four Loko is often referred to as “binge-in-a-can.”

Reference: http://www.nysenate.gov/photos/2011/apr/12/4122011-public-hearing-alcoholism-and-drug-abuse

New York Residents Don’t Need to Suffer from Alcoholism

For many people, the only experience they have is with “revolving door rehab” – they go to rehab, finish the program and leave, only to return again months or a year later. But it doesn’t have to be this way. The Narconon drug and alcohol rehabilitation program offers anyone with problem alcohol consumption a way to eliminate the cravings and destructive lifestyle of alcoholism.

Narconon assists alcoholic in achieving a lasting recovery through a unique eight-phase program that includes:

• A withdrawal step that utilizes nutritional support, gentle reorientation processes and physical assists to calm the sickness that often strikes the recovering alcoholic
• A thorough detoxification step that uses a specially-designed nutritional regimen, exercise and time spent in a dry-heat sauna to draw out drug residues that lodge in the fatty tissues of the body and may be involved in the triggering of cravings
• Extensive life skills training to restore one’s ability to make drug-free and alcohol-free choices in handling life’s normal upsets and stresses.

No one in New York or any other state needs to suffer from alcoholism. It is possible to find lasting sobriety through the Narconon drug and alcohol rehabilitation program. Contact Narconon now to find out how it can help you.

If you or someone you love is suffering from alcoholism in New York, contact Narconon today to learn more about the drug-free alcohol recovery program that can set your loved one on a new and sober path today.

Call 1-800-468-6933 today!