When first approaching the topic of alcohol consumption and abuse, we must acknowledge alcoholism. Alcoholism is an illness which affects those who consume mass amounts of alcohol on a regular basis. An article about alcoholism, reviewed by Yvette Cruz in 2002, states that this ' illness can interfere with one's physical or mental health, and social, family, or occupational responsibilities,". People with this condition spend most, if not all their time either drinking alcohol or thinking of creative ways to obtain it. Even though there has been evidence of the harmful physical and psychological effects, those who suffer from alcoholism still continue to return to the bottle (1).
             Individuals who abuse alcohol are often know as problem drinkers. According to Gary Vogin, those who abuse alcohol consume generous amounts of it, and in turn it becomes their drug of choice (1). Because of this abuse of alcohol, most begin to develop a tolerance, which is the desire to consume more alcohol in order to reach a certain level of intoxication (Cruz 1). In an article from the Australian Drug Foundation, those who continue to drink heavily become more susceptible to developing a tolerance. They have a strong urge to experience the effects of the alcohol, and with that the body builds a tolerance and a need to drink more in order to achieve those same effects. This tolerance can result in individuals who consume large amounts of alcohol without being drunk, although the alcohol is still harmful to their health. Tolerance creates a dependence that is contributed two ways, psychologically and physically. Psychologically, individuals feel that drinking is more important than any other aspect in their life at the time, and physically, the body adapts to the drug, then craves, and then cannot function normally without it ("Alcohol: Tolerance and Dependence" 1).
             Without the drug, individuals begin to go through withdrawa...