Alcohol poisoning kills 6 - mostly middle-aged men - a day, CDC reports

Published December 30, 2016

A report Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2015, from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found six Americans die each day from alcohol poisoning. To the surprise of even health officials, it turns out that most deaths from drinking too much involve middle-aged adults. (AP Photo/Jason Hirschfeld, File)

To the surprise of even health officials, it turns out that most deaths from drinking too much involve middle-aged adults — not teens or college kids.

A report Tuesday from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found six Americans die each day from alcohol poisoning. CDC officials said three-quarters of those deaths are adults ages 35 to 64, and most are men. CDC officials said they thought more would be younger.

The CDC searched death records from 2010 through 2012. Researchers focused on people who died after a single episode of binge drinking. Too much alcohol can shut down areas of the brain that control breathing, heart rate and temperature.

The report found an average of 2,221 alcohol poisoning deaths a year.

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