Does Alcoholism Run in Families?

Looking at Genetic Factors for Alcohol Use Disorders

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Many people want to predict whether they will be headed down the slippery slope to addiction if they indulge in a drink or two after dinner. Genetic risk is only one piece of the puzzle when it comes to the development of alcohol use disorder, but it’s an important one all the same. Does alcoholism run in families?

Research points to several genetic factors that could make you more likely to develop AUD. One of the most telling factors impacts alcohol metabolism and makes you less inclined to drink due to discomfort around alcohol ingestion. However, social and environmental factors play just as important a role in the development of substance use disorders.

Purpose Healing Center is here to help you sort out all of the underlying factors for your drinking. Keep reading to learn more about how your genes may pose a risk for substance misuse.

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How Do Genetic Factors Influence Alcohol Use Disorder?

There has long been a debate over whether people are influenced more by nature or nurture. Science is now showing that it may be your genes, at least as far as alcohol use disorder is concerned. According to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, genetic factors contribute half of the risk of developing alcoholism.

Those genes are transmitted directly from your family, no matter where they are in the tree. However, one relationship tends to have more significant consequences than others: the parent-child relationship.

It’s far more likely for a mother or father to pass down alcohol addiction to their offspring than it is for other family members to do the same.

It can still skip generations, but it’s worth considering the prominence of this consequential relationship.

Is There a Gene for Alcohol Metabolism?

Tolerance for alcohol stems from a complex array of factors, most notably the frequency of drinking. It also includes weight, gender, and even how much you have had to eat that day. However, when people discuss alcohol addiction, they often mean to refer to alcohol metabolism over tolerance.

The truth is that there may indeed be a gene for alcohol metabolism that influences the development of alcohol use disorder.

Consider how you might feel if you were to have unpleasant symptoms surrounding your drinking habit. For many people of Asian descent, this is the reality. When they drink, they experience flushing, nausea, and an elevated heart rate. In other words, they become very uncomfortable. It’s known as acute alcohol sensitivity.

As a result, they are more likely to avoid situations that cause them to feel this way and avoid alcohol as much as possible. This is one genetic variant that demonstrates how alcohol metabolism can play a key role in deterring substance use disorders, though it may not always work.

Environmental Factors for Alcohol Abuse

That being said, genetic factors still only account for half of your likelihood of substance abuse. The remaining factors are all environmental, which means they are very much within your control. In the modern world, alcohol is everywhere; you can hardly get away from it in the media and on TV shows.

The more you’re surrounded by alcohol and drug abuse, the more likely you are to indulge. That means that beyond your family history, the people you spend time with and the activities you partake in can influence your drinking.

If you have had adverse childhood experiences, research shows that you are more likely to take drugs. Living with an alcoholic parent might be considered an adverse childhood experience which strengthens the case that gene and environment interactions are hard to tease apart.

Stress and trauma in families also play a role in developing alcoholism, as people tend to use substances as a coping skill when the seas get rough. Being around close friends who see no problem with excessive drinking can also help normalize substance misuse.

Is It Possible to Spot Alcoholism at Birth?

Children Witnessing Father Drinking Alcohol

Many people wish they could head off a potential substance use disorder from the very start, but it isn’t quite that simple. You could be tested for one of several genes that indicate a higher risk of becoming an alcoholic, but you won’t know the long-term effects of those genetic accidents until later in life.

Part of the problem is that there is no single genetic adaptation that makes you more likely to drink. Instead, researchers have found hundreds of variations present in alcohol use disorder that share a pivotal role in its development.

Social and environmental factors are significant contributors to the development of alcohol use disorder. It’s impossible to talk about genetic risk without accounting for these other risk factors. For example, if parents abuse alcohol and their children grow up witnessing it, they are more likely to develop AUD compared to someone with more protective factors.

What the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual Has to Say

If you spend any time in therapy or under the care of a psychiatrist, you’ll come to be familiar with the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, the book used to diagnose mental disorders. Unfortunately, part of the issue with alcohol addiction is that it often presents with mental health struggles as well.

It’s less clear whether mental health influences drinking or the other way around, but it’s important to note regardless. After a clinician assesses your mental health, they will start to look at what level of help you may need for alcohol use.

Alcohol addiction will fall under the purview of what they call alcohol use disorder, but it isn’t a one-size-fits-all diagnosis. Instead, you will be assessed for mild, moderate, or severe impairment. This is based on your answers to the eleven questions included in the DSM-V.

This is more than a quiz to take to determine whether you indulge too frequently. It can help you note important patterns in your drinking and help you take the first steps to seek help.

What to Do With a Family History of Drinking

Whether you have alcoholic parents or maybe even a grandparent who drank too much, you should be very careful around alcohol addiction if you have these risk factors. You should take precautions to keep your drinking from getting out of hand.

The first and perhaps most important thing to do is to monitor your alcohol consumption. Set goals for yourself, such as taking nights off or intending to drink moderately rather than binge drinking. When you find that these limitations are too restrictive for you, it could be a sign that you need help.

Alcohol is often used to cope with unpleasant situations. Try to come up with a list of coping skills you can put in place in place of drinking, such as going for a walk, calling a friend, or dancing to your favorite song. These can often be enough to get you out of that headspace without the negative consequences.

Support groups like Adult Children of Alcoholics can also help untangle any issues with familial alcohol or drug abuse.

You should also create a list of reasons why you don’t want to drink. Maybe you saw firsthand how a parent’s drinking can impact their kids or their career. Perhaps you want to make your children proud and give them protective factors to grow up with. Keep your list somewhere you can see it and add to it.

If you notice the first signs of alcohol dependence just to get through the day, get help before it goes too far. You can attend Twelve Step meetings like Alcoholics Anonymous, enroll in residential treatment centers like Purpose Healing Center, or find a local therapist who will work with you one-on-one.

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Purpose Healing Center to Help Mitigate Alcohol Use Disorder

You can’t control your genetic risk of developing an alcohol use disorder, but you can take steps to eliminate far-reaching effects in your life.

Whether you have a genetic predisposition to alcohol abuse or not, Purpose Healing Center offers a robust, evidence-based treatment alcohol rehab program that helps you combat problematic drinking.

We offer every phase on the continuum of care from medical detox to intensive outpatient treatment. All it takes to get started is a simple phone call where we can answer your questions, verify your insurance benefits, and walk you through the placement process. Reach out to us today to learn more!