This drives me nuts. You know why? It drives me nuts because this isn’t fake news. This is real. It drives me nuts that I am 45 years old and I am just wrapping my head around the fact that alcohol is one of the top 5 most addictive drugs on the planet. Am I the only one that missed the memo on that?

It is the year 2020. Can we start talking about what alcohol really is for just a hot minute, please? Am I for prohibition? NO. The answer is absolutely, NO. But would I like to see us as a culture get a grip on the insane, irresponsible and over-glamorized marketing of this substance? Yes. Hell yes I would.

It wasn’t that long ago Doctors were writing prescriptions for cigarettes. Once we had real data proving that Tobacco caused cancer though, we as a culture were able to get a handle on the marketing pretty fast thru federal regulations and mandatory messaging. Today, if I choose to go buy a cancer stick and choose to smoke it, well, that’s on me, right? Everyone on the planet knows that cigarettes cause cancer. We know that they are highly addictive and it is far better if we don’t even start to smoke them.

Yet, we as a culture are still wrapping up bottles of the 5th most addictive substance on the planet, a Group 1 Carcinogen (SAME AS TOBACCO) and giving it to our loved ones at Christmas…SERIOUSLY? We are still serving the 5th most addictive drug on the planet at every single social event from baby showers to funerals? I think next year I’m going to wrap some cocaine up and give it to my Dad for his birthday. I think he will like it. Common, not everyone gets addicted to Coke.

This is according to CDC.gov. This is according to cancer.org. These are real statistics. The only reason that I can see that we continue to dress alcohol up in a glittery prom dress and ignore the fact that it is a legal poison is money. I was surprised to learn that the alcohol industry in this country is mostly self regulated. There are relatively few laws at the federal level regulating alcohol advertising, and at the state levels the laws vary.

The alcohol industry spends BILLIONS of dollars each year in the United States alone on advertising to make sure we all get the message loud and clear. Cool people drink alcohol, sexy people drink alcohol, successful people drink alcohol and Mommies Need Wine.

But it’s YOUR fault if you get addicted.

https://www.cnn.com/2019/01/02/health/most-addictive-substances-partner/index.html