Special Project Report (May, 2007)
For the Universities and Mantaro Valley Region (Junin) on:
The Effects of Alcoholism on the Individual and Peruvian Society as an entire; and find out how to take care of it in Junin, and the Mantaro Valley of Peru
Agony within the Valley
Part One: is there an issue?
A) The Problem: the query on this overview (or report) on drugs and alcoholism inside Junin, and the Mantaro Valley, of Peru, specifically, is: what are their effects on society, the person, and what will be done to curve mood altering chemical (alcoholism) usage; and do the parents of the Region (and the Mantaro Valley) imagine they’ve an issue: higher put, how did we get to were we’re at now with mood altering chemicals (drugs and alcohol): and what can we do about it? And the premise of this report, the hidden one which is, is to make aware to the reader, I do imagine there may be an issue.
In essence, how bad is the crisis for chemical usage and its abuse; and is it bad enough to make the people take motion…? I worked for twenty years in dual disorders; that’s to say, depression mixed with drugs or alcohol; to incorporate: manic, psychotic and schizophrenic disorders coupled with alcoholism. On this report of sorts, I can be using Lima, Peru, and the USA for comparisons, and connecting them to the Central Region of Peru (which consists of some 12-million inhabitants); that’s, Huancayo, and Junin, specifically I can be using some historical data to make my point, that being drugs and alcoholism exists, is an issue not just for the Central Region of Peru, but for all of Peru, and the Valley of Mantaro, together with Huancayo.
B) First now we have to define the issue here (and if the people of the Valley imagine that there’s a problem; or I even have to prove there may be an issue), perhaps people within the valley don’t think there may be one, yet there are numerous suicides, most are alcohol related; also there are numerous automotive accidents (as any taxi driver will inform you: ¨Yes, there may be an issue within the Mantaro Valley with alcohol.¨ I’ve asked lots of them). Moreover, family battering can also be a drug and alcohol related issue, within the Huancayo region. Within the USA, 90% of all crimes are drug or alcohol related, and I’m sure the information is comparatively the identical here: as we will have a look at some statistics in a moment.
C) The Robber: everyone will agree there are a number of them on the market, and why are they robbing and what are they spending their money on (9 out of 10 times it is just not because they can’t discover a job either); imagine it or not, robbers normally don’t rob to feed their children, or cloth them, or pay the phone bill or electric bill with the cash. They spend the cash on alcohol, drugs, gambling and good times. Most robbers rob children, old folks, and ladies because they’re easy prey; they don’t want a heavy challenge, they need to get the cash, gamble and drink it up it, and so they got to proceed to rob because they can’t hold a job down living this life style. This again becomes a societal problem. Drug addicts are a giant issue on this area, as is alcoholism. And the police and communities seem to not be bothered all that much with it, almost accepting it as a standard norm for Huancayo.
Note (collateral data): With various people I’ve talked to in regards to the local problems, particularly with alcoholism inside Huancayo, and specifically, with children and teenagers–their foremost peeve is that there’s a lack of cultural, literary, and social outlets, or groups available to them, and with this lack of prompts, they feel the plan of action they might take is alcohol and medicines: declaring: economic issue.
Part Two: Some Statistics and Data:
Note: To know the issue, one must go below the surface of the situation, that’s where the issue lies, and where one needs to take a look at, where I even have to bring to the reader the problems that exist (to point out); and why. One may say after reading this, all of us have a scarcity of resources here to do much in regards to the problem; but we are able to have a look at that issue, later:
A) Population figures 1: there are about 12-million inhabitants within the Central Region; within the Junin region 1.2 million inhabitants which incorporates the Mantaro Valley; a bit greater than 365,000-thousand inhabitants live in Huancayo; within the inner city 118,000, (and a few 488,000 inhabitants, in case you have in mind the agricultural area), and around seven to 10 thousand in each of the various surrounding town-lets–and about 27-million inhabitants in Peru.
B) Population figures 2:out of this massive figure of 27-million, there may be about 10 to 13 percent of Peru’s population who’re Alcoholics, problem drinkers, chronic drinkers (within the USA, it’s about 8%) So out of the 27-million now we have about 3.1 million inhabitants that drink to excess, around 80% of Peru’s adults drink, whereas, 70% of American adults drink.
(All these figures will be corroborated, and is not going to fall too wanting my rounding off figures.)
Note 1: In referring to Alcohol Dependence I mean, Alcoholic; once I discuss with Alcohol abuse, I’m referring to, an issue drinker, perhaps with an antisocial disorder.
Note 2: Often alcohol abuse will be traced back to poverty, stress and issues with cultural mores; whereas, all these elements may exist within the Alcoholic, he has one other curse, he has the biochemical, psychological obsession, the genetic disposition, the saturation of the body with the drug or alcohol.
Note 3: Historically, the Inca Empire also had its excessive drinking habits, resulting from the trauma of conquest, or continued war, and surprised values, and sometimes they became self-destructive, with behavior by toxic consumption.
C) Crimes and Deaths: Within the Junin area, there have been 3208 deaths in 2005, of those deaths, about 400 were drug and alcohol related; in Huancayo alone 1200 deaths, and about 160 will be related to drugs and alcohol.
D) The crimes in 2004, coping with selling and usage: Total Crimes: 3818 of those (drug and alcohol related): 1516 were men, and 472 women.
E) Captured for usage of medicine and alcohol in 2004, were 6425 men, and 536 women.
F) Junin Accidents, in 2004, 271 residents were hit by cars, and there have been 403 automotive crashes, out of a population of 1.2 Million residents.
G) Out of those figures above, 1202-people were in jail (or about 20% of the near 7000 crimes that were committed). Basically it has been said 90% of crimes in America are drug or alcohol related, meaning, the person committing the crime, or accident was under the influence. I do imagine this figure might be higher for Peru, since all other previous figures are.
H) In a single hospital in Peru, out of 276 patients that got here in for alcohol and drug issues, 26.1% were there for strictly alcohol, and 22.1% were there for drugs and alcohol consumption, and 15.2 for Alcohol with pot usage (the difference were alcohol and other drug related chemicals mixed, not mentioned here). Again I stress that is one hospital of many, and it has been estimated most folk don’t ever make it to the hospital.
I) Drug trafficking continues to be alive, but I only have date for 1997 to 1999, near 8-years old. Nevertheless it indicates this, 14319 drug traffickers were jailed in a single yr.
The purpose to be made here is, the purpose of which this report is attempting to say, or make the reader aware of, is: there may be an issue in Peru with drugs and alcohol usage, and specifically, the in Junin (Huancayo, Mantaro Valley area).
Part Three: Chemically Speaking and Societal Issues:
A) alcohol is a depressant, amongst other things, and those that have abused it beyond their capability to stop using it, often cannot define their problems, considering they wouldn’t have one, or unwilling to confess they got one, and it has to do with alcoholism addiction, obsession, denial (and we are able to add drug usage into this paragraph also); which accounts for: 1) people going to work late, 2) lack of production at work 3) higher medical bills 4) many family issues that may not be issues had alcohol not been involved 5) thieves 6) child abuse 7) automotive accidents 8) suicides 9) killings and crimes usually. Thus, Alcoholism and drug addiction, and we are able to add compulsive gambling, becomes a family issue, a person issue, and a societal Issue.
Note: the query comes up: ´…can the social fiber of the Mantaro Valley specifically, and the Central Region (as an entire), take the strain of its intoxicating unrestrained inhabitants causing all this maladaptive behavior, and what’s the legacy that may hand right down to our siblings, meaning, in the event that they do what they see, additionally they will turn out to be alcoholics or drug addicts, thus the longer term doesn’t look too vibrant.
B) Three: Social Issue: As I identified, this can be a societal problems, not only a person one alone, though the person would really like to imagine it’s his problem, and nobody else’s, and has the suitable to drink, and do as he pleases, without limits, yes, he wants rights without responsibilities. But can society allow this, can society afford this for everybody across the drug or alcohol user becomes infected with the behavior of the user.
If the people or the federal government or society as an entire, cannot see it as an issue, but relatively a custom, or tradition, it is tough to repair, or prevent. But again, we are able to see this by the crisis throughout the society, it’s an issue. And it would not go away by itself. And I realize, as I sure all folks in Peru do, programs cost money. But let us take a look at the price of continued usage unabated:
1–Within the Hills of Peru there are still coca-growing, as recent as 2006, seven people were ambushed
2–Social Development is unemotional (alcohol paralyzes emotions, thus, the emotional affect is flat); together with the dearth of economic opportunities, for they don’t develop for the user or the world involved (meaning the world copies its inhabitants, one normally needs to maneuver out of it to search out stability)
3–The Rural Sierra country people (which consist of 4.2 million) are on the poor side of the dimensions, and a pair of.3 million come under the very poor side. Poverty enhances distress and depression, and consequently comes with it, a better crime rate to maintain up ones bad habits, resembling, alcoholism and drug usage, and selling of medicine. The dearth of poverty will reduce these figures (it is just not to say the wealthy or well off is not going to use alcohol or drugs, for however, affluent and stressful societies appear to bear the identical burden, perhaps due to boredom and spare time available).
4–what we want to do for these Rural Sierra folks is: add Education, societal protection, and help with self-esteem, and the drug and alcohol problem can be reduced.
5–some of the great aspects that the Peruvian society has acquired previously 35-years is that its life expectancy went from 53 years in 1970, to 70-years in 2004. Nevertheless it is a indisputable fact, there aren’t any old Alcoholics, they die of their 40s. Together with the life expectancy increases in Peru, alcohol problems increased too, this might have been curtailed with Education had it went side by side with the growing upward on the ladder of life expectancy.
Society’s Alcoholics
Now let us take a look at what society is producing, coping with Dependence (or ripe alcoholics living amongst the various (meaning; non users). Let me also add before we get into the figures below, in the tutorial area, recovering alcoholics must be taught find out how to live a sober life, or an ongoing recovering life, for the recovering means exactly that, an ongoing sobriety program for her or him. For youths or teenagers they must be taught find out how to live a life without alcohol, taught its consequences if the select it. These figures below represent the entire population of Peru):
Years of Age
12 to 13 years of age 1% of Peru’s children are developing a dependency for alcohol
14 to 16 years of age 3% of Peru’s teenagers are problem drinkers
17 to 19 years of age 11.5% of Peru’s young adults are depending on alcohol usage
20 to 40 years of age 13.5% of Peru’s adult are chemically dependent
41 to 59 years of age 7. % of Peru’s aging adults are alcoholics
60 to 64 years of age 7. % of Peru’s Elderly are alcoholics (Often this group becomes alcoholics due to symptoms of aging and being alone, and depression)
Note 1: Suicidal statistics for 2002 (study done in Lima, Peru): 12. 2 % of the populations have considered suicide, and out of that, 3% have attempted it. So now we have a society of 25-million people, and so now we have 6.5 million people considering of killing themselves, and out of that, 195,000-people attempted to kill themselves in 2002, and these are only known figures, I’d expect them to triple this amount should the remaining of the parents be counted. So I’d figure 600,000 minimum tried to kill themselves in 2002.
Note 2: Within the Junin region, 2.15% of the elderly belong to adult centers: which is a really small amount, but such centers can occupy the elderly with activities, making their lives sweeter before they pass on, but normally what happens, is when the elderly wouldn’t have access, or attend these, they resort to alcohol use, and even at an old age, one can saturate their bodies, to chemically change their internal structures and thus, produce a chemical dependency.
Note 3: In 2002 1120 case of abuse and violence was reported against the elderly, and I think this is barely 10% of the true figure: a lot of the cases handled the feminine elderly, under the category of sexual violence. Again, drug and alcohol related.
Note 4: Any poor health system I do imagine adds to the chance of its residents in using chemicals for escape purposes. Listed here are some figures to review on The Health Systems throughout the world: based on the WHO (World Health Organization): out of 191 countries, Peru is number 129, Ecuador is 111, Bolivia is 126, Chile is 33, and Colombia is 22.
Note 5: Lima has 22,000-Physicians, with roughly, 8-million inhabitants; whereas, the Central Region has 7,500-Physicians, with over 12-million inhabitants. Inside Junin there are 454 establishments for health care (7 hospitals, 56 Health centers, and 391 Health posts), that will sound like lots but in St. Paul, Minnesota, which is lower than 300,000 people, they’ve greater than 7-hospitals, and an uncountable variety of health centers. Lima has 700-establishemnts, and only 8-million inhabitants to service.
Note 6: Most of the women of Peru contribute much of the domestic violence with husbands while under the influence of alcoholism; which produces aggressive behavior, and chronic physical problems.