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About 1,000 Minnesota people died from alcohol use in 2020, and the COVID-19 pandemic likely played a factor in increasing the number of alcohol-related deaths.
This is according to the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH), which on Thursday released preliminary data on preventable deaths from alcohol consumption over the past year.
MDH says 992 people died in 2020 from alcohol consumption last year, noting preliminary data suggesting pandemic-related factors “may have driven a decades-long trend of increasing alcohol-related deaths in Minnesota. “
“The death of so many Minnesota alcoholics is tragic and preventable,” said Jan Malcolm, Minnesota’s health commissioner. “Unfortunately, the pandemic has amplified some of the root causes of substance use and substance use disorders, such as social isolation, job loss, and lack of access to treatment.
“In response, we need to strengthen the overall opportunities for connection and financial security of our communities, as well as specific evidence-based community strategies to reduce excessive alcohol consumption.”
From 2000 to 2010, the number of deaths entirely attributable to alcohol increased by a third. And they doubled between 2010 and 2020.
Minnesota Department of Health
MDH says alcohol deaths in 2020 reflect similar trends in recent years until June, when the number of alcohol-related deaths began to accelerate. This acceleration is believed to be due in part to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“In 2020, we saw that after May, alcohol-related deaths continued to remain high and 171 more Minnesotas died in 2020 compared to 2019, which is a bigger leap than the previous trend in the pandemic. said Kari Gloppen, an MDH alcohol epidemiologist. “Studies show that excessive alcohol affects the brain, heart, liver, digestive system and even the immune system. Alcohol is also a carcinogen that has been linked to several types of cancer.”
MDH
MDH says preliminary data underestimates the impact of alcohol consumption on deaths in Minnesota, as it only includes deaths that are entirely attributable to alcohol (only deaths that would not have happened if there were no alcohol) and does not include the causes of death attributable to alcohol. (when alcohol is one of several factors that contribute to a person’s death).
These deaths can be prevented, MDH says, and noted by a working group that has recommended several strategies to reduce excess alcohol. Among them: raising the price of alcohol; regulate the number and concentration of places in a community that sells alcohol; consistent enforcement of laws prohibiting the sale of alcohol to minors; electrical screening and brief intervention to reduce excessive alcohol consumption.