Alcohol-related deaths have increased in the United States

An analysis of death certificates suggests that the number of alcohol-related deaths doubled in the United States between 1999-2017.

In the analysis, which is published in Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research, the number of alcohol-related deaths per year among people aged 16 years and older rose from 35,914 to 72,558 and the rate increased from 16.9 to 25.5 per 100,000. Nearly 1 million alcohol-related deaths were recorded between 1999-2017. In 2017, 2.6% of roughly 2.8 million deaths in the United States involved alcohol.

Nearly half of alcohol-related deaths resulted from liver disease or overdoses on alcohol alone or with other drugs. Rates of alcohol-related deaths were highest among males, people in age groups spanning 45-74 years, and among non-Hispanic American Indians or Alaska Natives.