The word alcoholism itself was not actually recognized in the US until the late 1930s, through the formation of the alcohol support group known as Alcoholics Anonymous or AA as it is sometimes referred to. AA does not actually give alcoholism a concrete definition, but recognizes it as something between an allergy and an illness with a team support method of accountability and responsibility being a way to control alcoholism.

It wasn't until Doctor E. Morton Jellinek from New England came along that problems being experienced by chronic alcoholics were actually first classified. He defined the problem as a person through excessive alcohol consumption developed serious health conditions both physically and mentally. An alcoholic would also encounter both domestic and economical problems as a result of persistent alcohol abuse.

They therefore need treatment. This definition has seen many changes over the years by different medical affiliations. The American Medical Association currently uses the word alcoholism to refer to a particular chronic primary disease.

Some minorities in the medical field, such as Herbert Fingarette and Stanton Peele, argue against alcoholism being considered a disease. But, critics of the disease theory acknowledge that the word alcoholism; refers to a disease, and use the term heavy drinking; when discussing the harmful effects of alcohol consumption.

With alcoholism's uncertain definition, the disease is often hard to accurately detect. There is no physical or mental difference between someone who drinks habitually and an alcoholic. To get more up to date information regarding alcoholism you should definitely take a look at the blog over at stopdrinking.org as it is a real eye opener.