DRINKING TO DEATH

Booze-Related Deaths in U.S. Have Doubled, Study Finds

In 2017, the number of alcohol-related deaths increased to 72,558, with large jump among non-Hispanic white women.

The number of Americans who have died from alcohol-related problems each year has more than doubled between 1999 and 2017, according to a new study released Wednesday. CNN first reported the figures that were published by researchers from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. The number of alcohol-related deaths shot to 72,558 in 2017, up from 35,914 deaths in 1999. That is an increase to 25.5 per 100,000 Americans from 16.9. Nearly one million Americans have died from alcohol-related problems during the 18-year time period and, in 2017, 2.6 percent of 2.8 million deaths in the U.S. were alcohol-related. The largest annual increase in deaths was among non-Hispanic white women, according to CNN. Rates of death also increased more for people between the ages of 55 and 64. Despite the numbers being very high, researchers believe they have undercounted because death certificates often fail to explain the role alcohol plays in a death.