What Are The Known Causes Of Alcoholism?

The actual causes of alcoholism are unknown, but there are factors which contribute to one becoming an alcoholic. Some of the contributory factors to it are:
1.Occupation: Those who work in alcohol factories or those whose parents brew alcohol are more likely to be influenced in the long run to taste the drink and eventually succumb to its overwhelming effect and become addicted to its use.
2.Heredity: Alcoholism is known to run in families as about 45% of alcoholics are children whose parents had had alcoholism problems. This is more likely to be an act of imitation rather than genetic problem.
3.Childhood deprivation: One who had as a child suffered deprivation due to marital disharmony or divorce of the parents is likely to become an alcoholic when he grows into adulthood.
4.Psychological factor: some people turn to alcohol during periods of stress, frustration e.g. as a result of failure in an exam, loss of dear one, marital breakup, loss of personal property, etc as a way of trying to overcome the stress or depression.
5.Socio-Cultural: Alcohol use is commoner in some cultural set up e.g. among the Irish and Russians. I do not mean to spite any particular people, but it is a known fact that alcohol intake among these people is relatively high.
6.Sex: Alcohol intake is higher amongst men than in women. This may not be purely due to constitutional differences but as a result of environmental factor, and it may also be related to cultural values as well; though these days women are competing as far as the use of alcoholic beverages is concerned.
7.Psychiatric causes: Alcohol intake also increases during periods of anxiety in youths, depression in middle age and loneliness in old age.
8.Spiritual causes: It is also believed in some cultures and religions that the influence of witchcraft, spell, curses, demonic manipulations, etc could make one become an alcoholic or indulge in alcoholism as the case may be. This belief is very strong in the African continent and explains why spiritual help are sought when other sources fail to help the patient.