olism physiological problems such as hard tremors and blackouts, psychological such as an obsessive to drink and also behavior problems that disrupt social or work life(Sora 30).
             Symptoms of alcoholism can be difficult to notice. One symptom is the compulsion to drink. The compulsion is always there although the alcoholic may be unaware of it or will make excuses for it, like he or she decides whether or not to pick up a drink. Alcoholism aggravates problems already existing in an individual. While a person is continuing to drink, gastritis, cirrhosis of the liver, deterioration of the blood vessels of the brain, weakness in the muscle, impotence in men, menstrual difficulties in women, mental deterioration, heart disease continue to escalate. Alcoholism is a progressive disease if left untreated (McAurthur).
             It is uncertain how this disease is started. Some suggest it may be hereditary, there is about a twenty-five percent chance that a child of an alcoholic will become an alcoholic (Silverstein 31). The genes a person inherits partially explains this pattern, a person's individual lifestyle is also a factor. Others feel it is related to a specific personality type. All types of people can become chemically dependent (Johnson, 9). About forty-three percent of U.S. adults have been exposed to alcoholism in the family. Sixty-two percent of high school seniors report they have been drunk once before. (Howardson). People who begin drinking before age fifteen are four times more likely to develop alcoholism than those who begin at age twenty-one (Howardson). More than seven percent of the population ages 18 years and older, nearly 13.8 million American have problems with drinking, including 8.1million people who are alcoholics. Almost three times as many men as women are problem drinkers, and prevalence is highest for both sexes in the 18 to 29-year-old age group.
             The effects of alcohol are significant, even in s...