The National Survey of Drug Use and Health announced that a study found that most alcohol drinkers in the U.S weren't alcoholics, even if they were binge drinkers.

The implication from the findings was that more could be done to help binge, or heavy drinkers, since they weren't genetically indisposed to quitting.

Like Us on Facebook

The government survey of 138,100 Americans ran against common perceptions that most heavy drinkers were addicted to alcohol. The survey found 90 percent of those drinking until they were falling-down drunk  weren't addicted to alcohol.

Dr. Robert Brewer, chief of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention alcohol program, said many people considered excessive drinking the same as alcohol dependence. The fact their behavior can change meant, "We need to think about other strategies to address these people who are drinking too much but who are not addicted to alcohol," he said.

Excessive drinking was credited as causing nearly 90,000 deaths annually, making it a major public health concern. Everything from liver disease to vehicular deaths, accidental mortality and alcohol poisoning can be traced to fallout from excessive drinking a minimum of once a week.

Excessive drinking is defined for men as consuming five or more drinks in one session, or more than 15 drinks in a week. Women who have four drinks at one sitting or eight drinks in a week's time are considered to be excessive drinkers.

While nearly 30 percent of the U.S. population engages in excessive drinking patterns, nine out of 10 don't meet the criteria for being alcoholics, according to the study.

One measure that might help, researchers said, was the simple act of raising the costs of an alcoholic by as little as 10 percent. Studies show a 7 percent reduction in alcohol consumption as a result.

Another measure that would reduce excessive alcohol consumption would be using zoning laws to reduce the number of places serving alcohol in an area. Intervention from a doctor speaking to his patients can curb this behavior, too.

Tagsalcohol, drinking, liquor, Beer, excessive drinking, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, alcholism, who do people binge drink?