Author: Charles Frank
Alcohol Awareness Toolkit Prevention Technology Transfer Center PTTC Network
Alcohol Awareness Month is dedicated to increasing public knowledge about the dangers of alcohol and the effects and causes of alcohol use disorder. We hope you join us to raise our collective voice on this critical public health issue during National Alcohol Awareness Month. You will be subject to the destination website’s privacy policy when you follow the link.
- From local coalitions to state public health departments and prevention coordinators, these materials have been designed with you in mind.
- These resources are free, cover many topics, and are available in multiple languages.
- Alcohol-related problems continue to exact an immense toll on individuals, families, and communities.
- As I discussed in my previous blog post, NIAAA also has an important new website that can help you navigate the often complicated process of choosing treatment for alcohol problems.
We encourage our prevention partners to use the materials to raise awareness around the weekly themes to observe April as National Alcohol Awareness Month. Since its inception in 1987, National Alcohol Awareness Month has saved many lives from alcohol-related deaths. Some of the ways the NCADD has made it possible to fight alcoholism is by launching personalized campaigns every year, Alcohol-Free-Weekend encouraging abstinence, and seeking help for someone if they are unable to.
Alcohol-impaired driving deaths
As a result of the ban, the illegal trade of alcohol booms, leading to the cancellation of the prohibition law.
These resources are free, cover many topics, and are available in multiple languages. Find a helpful review of some of the major NIAAA resources on the NIAAA Director’s Blog. The NIAAA Alcohol Treatment Navigator can help you recognize and find high quality treatment for alcohol use disorder. If you drink excessively, seek medical help to plan a safe recovery as sudden abstinence can be life threatening. NIAAA’s Rethinking Drinking can help you assess your drinking habits and provides information to help you cut back or stop drinking.
The D.A.R.E (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) and Know Your Limits campaigns have also instilled much-needed information about the harmful effects of alcohol consumption in children from an early age. The NCADD encourages people to participate by wearing red ribbons, talking with kids and teens about alcohol, hosting dry parties, having conversations with friends and family about drinking, and having an alcohol-free weekend. Alcohol Awareness Month is held every April to help spread awareness about the dangers of alcohol and the causes of and treatments for alcohol use disorder. The National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence (NCADD) sponsors Alcohol Awareness Month, which has been observed since 1987. Recognizing that you want to change your relationship with alcohol is a big step, and it can be overwhelming to think about the next steps, such as treatment. Even if there aren’t local events, there are several ways you can participate in raising awareness.
National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA)
During the month, the NCADD and other national public health organizations encourage community organizations and healthcare professionals to hold events and offer alcohol-related education materials. Most adults in the United States who drink alcohol drink moderately and without complications. At the same time, alcohol-related problems are among the most significant public health issues in the country. Alcohol use disorder (AUD) affects about 15 million adults in the United States, and an estimated 88,000 people die from alcohol-related causes annually, making alcohol the third leading preventable cause of death in the nation. Start by deploying the Alcohol Awareness Toolkit memes to enhance your social media presence.
This Alcohol Awareness Month is a great opportunity to update your knowledge about alcohol, alcohol use disorder, and their impacts on health and society. Alcohol-related problems continue to exact an immense toll on individuals, families, and communities. In the United States, more than 140,000 people per year die from alcohol misuse, making it one of the leading causes of preventable deaths. Alcohol misuse is linked to more than 200 disease and injury-related conditions, meaning alcohol misuse contributes substantially to health care costs and lost productivity and affects people’s health in ways that they may not realize.
Awareness areas include alcohol use risks, AUD treatments, AUD prevention, and the effects of alcohol misuse on individuals, families, and communities. Long-term, excessive drinking of alcohol can gravely affect your health and leads to chronic diseases including high blood pressure, liver disease, digestive problems, and even cancer. The Northwest PTTC is excited to bring these resources to communities in Region 10 and throughout the rest of the PTTC Network.
Why National Alcohol Awareness Month Is Important
We keep track of fun holidays and special moments on the cultural calendar — giving you exciting activities, deals, local events, brand promotions, and other exciting ways to celebrate. Binge drinking is when blood alcohol concentration comes to 0,08 g/dL, which happens when a man drinks five glasses and a woman drinks four in about two hours. Whether you are looking for counseling, peer support groups, accountability, or recovery tools you can pull up on your phone, you have options. Click on the images or links below to be directed to the template for that meme on Canva where you can customize them with your organization’s logo. As I discussed in my previous blog post, NIAAA also has an important new website that can help you navigate the often complicated process of choosing treatment for alcohol problems.
You can access the memes through Canva, a free online platform where links to each meme template can be downloaded and customized with your own logo! Its primary goal is increasing public awareness and education about alcohol and alcohol use disorder (AUD), formerly known as “alcoholism”. Each month we highlight National Health Observances (NHOs) that align with our mission to improve health in the United States. In April, we’re raising awareness about minority health, alcohol awareness, and celebrating public health.
Alcohol misuse can also have painful emotional impacts on individuals and their loved ones. Complement your online social media messages with the engagement materials to raise awareness about alcohol-related harms, your efforts, and evidence-based alcohol policy safeguards. The Council leverages traditional and social media campaigns during April to draw attention to the causes of alcoholism and the risks of alcohol dependence, and encourages people to talk about this disease. It aims to foster responsible attitudes by designating a month of candid discussions and information sharing, while reaching out to the American public via community-sponsored awareness activities and campaigns designed to prevent alcoholism. NIAAA’s wealth of research-based resources can help cut through the clutter and get at the heart of the issues around alcohol misuse.
What is the aim of Alcohol Awareness Month?
With this and other National Health Observance toolkits offered on healthfinder.gov, we’ve made it easier for you to make a difference. The toolkits provide resources for organizations like schools, health care practices, and health departments to raise awareness about critical public health issues, like the health risks of drinking too much alcohol. Whether you plan to post the memes for the weekly themes or want to engage partners in submitting an opinion editorial about the importance of strong alcohol policy safeguards, or both, the toolkit is here to help you. From local coalitions to state public health departments and prevention coordinators, these materials have been designed with you in mind. I also encourage you to take a close look at Rethinking Drinking and the Alcohol Treatment Navigator to learn more about AUD and how to find quality care to address it.
If you recognize any of these symptoms in yourself, it’s time to rethink the role that alcohol plays in your life. NIAAA has some interactive resources to help you examine your drinking patterns further and, if needed, recognize and search for quality care. Marty Mann founded the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence (NCADD). She was one of the early members of Alcoholics Anonymous and the first woman to have successfully gone through a 12-step group. She founded NCADD to help people like her get counseled and treated for alcoholism and dedicated this group to key medical and scientific research for the community.