The Consequential Increase of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse During Covid- Its Causes and Implications

Abstract

Covid-19 is not just a virus which is risking human lives everyday, but it is a phenomenon which has inflicted major changes on the long-term global survival and economic strategies. The pandemic has brought about major diversions in the world order, which philosophers and scientists have predicted to occur once in a century’s time. Covid-19 has also affected the personal health, physical and psychological of all human beings. It has forced people to change their social behaviors significantly, which has had consequential effect on their mental health. One significant result of the pandemic is the increased consumption of alcohol and other psychoactive substances among people. As people are forced to lock themselves up inside their homes, some have resorted to exercising, biking, running, and meditation to maintain sanity, while others have boosted their addictive behavior by consuming more alcohol and drugs to make staying-indoors more entertaining. Nielsen has reported a 54% rise in the national consumption of alcohol on the week of March 21st 2020, as compared to the same in 2019. The online sales of alcohol have also risen enormously from 2019 to 2020. The study aims to address the problem of increased alcoholism and substance abuse during Covid-19 by understanding the causes of this rise. The method is based on analysis and comparison of available survey reports, to find out exactly what amount of human consumption has increased during the pandemic. From the findings we can conclude that alcoholism and substance abuse has risen significantly during Covid-19, and psychological distress, anxiety and depression can be some major causes for this abnormal social behavior. It can also be implied that this increased alcoholism is likely to affect the physical health, neural and social behavior, and the work life of many human beings through the pandemic.