Alcohol Abuse in Russia
Joe Bloe
Professor I.B Smart
BS 131
December XX, 2008
Alcohol Abuse in Russia
Family Issues
Russians drink more alcohol than any other nation in the world. (Halpin, 2007, p1) The Times of London reports that Russians are currently going on an alcoholic binge even by Russian standards. According to the country’s chief public health officer, Gennadi Onishenko, Russians are drinking nearly three times as much as they did sixteen years ago. Onishenko’s study was promulgated by the Russian equivalent of the consumer protection agency and it reported that at least 2.3 million people in Russia were alcoholics. The average Russian consumed 15 litres (26 pints) of pure alcohol per annum, up from 5.4 litres in 1990, and this phenomena is blamed for a rising rate of mortality among men. This compares to 8.4 litres for people in the United States and 7.6 litres in Japan. (Halpin, 2007 p 1) Violent crime and alcohol consumption have increased throughout the Russian federation since the fall of the Soviet Union. This has shown harmful consequences for families and communities, as heavy alcohol drinking is closely associated with violent behavior in Russia. The correlation between heavy drinking and violence is a complicated mixture of physiological, psychological, situational, social and cultural elements. Whenever measures to control alcohol production and consumption have been introduced, reduced violence has occurred in Russia and elsewhere. (WHO, 2006) Violence is a family’s worst enemy and may include physical and sexual assaults, mental or emotional abuse and neglect. It may also be categorized into interpersonal violence, child maltreatment or neglect, intimate partner violence within a relationship, sexual violence, abuse of the elderly or self-directed violence including suicide. (WHO, 2006) There is ample evidence to support the relationship between heavy drinking and violence. In Russia, alcohol has been involved in three-quarters of
Professor I.B Smart
BS 131
December XX, 2008
Alcohol Abuse in Russia
Family Issues
Russians drink more alcohol than any other nation in the world. (Halpin, 2007, p1) The Times of London reports that Russians are currently going on an alcoholic binge even by Russian standards. According to the country’s chief public health officer, Gennadi Onishenko, Russians are drinking nearly three times as much as they did sixteen years ago. Onishenko’s study was promulgated by the Russian equivalent of the consumer protection agency and it reported that at least 2.3 million people in Russia were alcoholics. The average Russian consumed 15 litres (26 pints) of pure alcohol per annum, up from 5.4 litres in 1990, and this phenomena is blamed for a rising rate of mortality among men. This compares to 8.4 litres for people in the United States and 7.6 litres in Japan. (Halpin, 2007 p 1) Violent crime and alcohol consumption have increased throughout the Russian federation since the fall of the Soviet Union. This has shown harmful consequences for families and communities, as heavy alcohol drinking is closely associated with violent behavior in Russia. The correlation between heavy drinking and violence is a complicated mixture of physiological, psychological, situational, social and cultural elements. Whenever measures to control alcohol production and consumption have been introduced, reduced violence has occurred in Russia and elsewhere. (WHO, 2006) Violence is a family’s worst enemy and may include physical and sexual assaults, mental or emotional abuse and neglect. It may also be categorized into interpersonal violence, child maltreatment or neglect, intimate partner violence within a relationship, sexual violence, abuse of the elderly or self-directed violence including suicide. (WHO, 2006) There is ample evidence to support the relationship between heavy drinking and violence. In Russia, alcohol has been involved in three-quarters of
Cited: Central Intelligence Agency, (CIA) “Russia,” The World Factbook, November 20, 2008, accessed online on December 3, 2008 at: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/rs.html Coutsoukis, Photias, “Russia Alcohol Narcotics and Tobacco,” March 27, 2005, accessed online on December 3, 2008 at: http://www.photius.com/countries/russia/society/russia_society_alcohol_narcotics_~10784.html Halpin, Tony, “Health alert as Russia’s alcohol consumption triples,” The Times, April 13, 2007, accessed online on December 1, 2008 at: Rand Corporation, “Russia’s Mortality Crisis: Drinking, Disease and Deteriorating Health Care,” Population Matters Policy Brief, 2001, accessed online on December 2, 2008 at: November 24, 2008, accessed online on December 3, 2008 at: http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/reuters/081124/odds/odd_us_russia_alcohol Tartakovsky, Joseph, “Vodka – elixir of the masses,” Los Angles Times, April 16, 2006, Accessed online on December 3, 2008 at: Federation,” WHO Regional Office in Europe, Policy Briefing 2006, accessed online on December 1, 2008 at: http://www.euro.who.int/Document/E88757.pdf