More alcohol is consumed on average over the holidays. However, for the average working person, drinking every evening to relieve stress is on the rise in Finland.
Doctor Kaarlo Simojoki, Medical Director of the A-Clinic Foundation, a non-governmental rehabilitation service that operates a series of substance abuse prevention clinics throughout the country, believes there’s good reason to be very concerned about the group of people who go to work, manage their other responsibilities and drink regularly.
“In our culture, there is this notion that so long as you take care of your work and other civic duties, there’s no need to address issues such as use or abuse of alcohol,” says Simojoki.
“I have seen firsthand how those people may consume dangerous amounts of alcohol in their free time and even be a threat to others because of their alcohol use and abuse. Children may carry the consequences of living with these experiences for a long time,” says Simojoki. “Yet hardly anyone interferes with this type of drinking – so long as the mother or father carries out their work and other responsibilities.”
Alcohol destroys interaction – a drunk is not present
Drinking to get drunk has also increased, as have other types of drinking, says Simojoki.
”Although some people may drink less in one evening, they drink more frequently. They go to work, they take care of civic duties, live a so-called respectable life, but they drink regularly even if it's not binge drinking," he says.
According to Simojoki, in Finland there are 400,000--600,000 risk users of alcohol, which is the category of drinkers that these stress-relieving evening tipplers belong to. He says that they don't necessarily understand the effects of long-term alcohol use and how drinking affects their families and their everyday interactions with other people.
In the long-term, heavy drinking leads to addiction for just about everyone, says Simojoki.
Moreover, he is concerned about the model that parents give to their children about alcohol consumption. If parents use alcohol as a way to relax and alleviate stress, it sends a signal to their children, who are more likely pick up similar habits.
