cultural influences
Societal beliefs about drugs and alcohol often influence attitudes toward abuse and addiction. If drinking is frowned upon within a culture, access if usually limited and reduces rates of addiction. Cultures that include alcohol in most celebrations from sports to weddings often see higher rates of alcoholism due to the easy acceptance of its use.
Posted under Cultural Perspectives
Alcoholism in Mongolia: A National Crisis
By Colin Gilbert
After the fall of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s, Mongolia was left on shaky ground. When the Russians left, the country’s economic infrastructure quickly deteriorated and countless Mongolians were left jobless. One commodity that did survive the collapse, though, was liquor. Cheap vodka and other alcoholic beverages were available at every corner, and the masses of people left in poverty turned to it in an effort to cope with their plight.
Sadly, not much has changed in Mongolia since it became an independent country. There is a shop selling cheap liquor on almost every corner, and the number of people addicted to alcohol is astronomical. The U.N.’s World Health Organization (WHO) reported in 2006 that 22 percent of men and 5 percent of women in Mongolia are alcoholics. The rate of alcohol dependency is three times higher than that of Europe. Furthermore, about one in five Mongolian men binge drink every week.
Posted under Mental Health
Bipolar and Blue: Does It Matter What Culture You Belong To?
Bipolar mental illness, along with schizophrenia, affects people in different cultures all over the world. These biologically based and possibly inherited tendencies are part of the human condition, it seems. Yet there are also regions of the planet, and cultural “islands”, where the bipolar tendencies toward depression and suicide are less common, or less severe. And then there are a few areas where they are more severe. So does culture matter in the prevention and care of bipolar spectrum disorders? Three core elements create some of the major differences between cultures in ways that may matter: location –where a culture is located and the environment from which it draws sustenance and meaning; food — what foods a culture eats the most; and social structure –what kinds of relationships make up the community and how they structure the every day lives of the people of that culture. Continue Reading
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