Alcoholism

Do I drink too much? You might be asking yourself this question if you are struggling with your dependence on alcohol. One in 13 Americans has alcohol dependence issues. There are several ways to test for alcoholism; some require self-assessments and/or counseling and treatment under the care of a health care professional.

One of the most popular self-assessment alcoholism tests is the Michigan Alcoholism Screening Test (MAST). This 20-plus question test has proven to be an effective in assessing a person’s dependence on alcohol. Developed in 1971, the MAST is a psychological screening test entirely dependent on the test taker’s honest answers to the questions. Some of the items on the MAST ask questions like: Do you feel guilty about your drinking habits? Has a friend or relative expressed concern or worry about your drinking? Have you, or do you, attend Alcoholics Anonymous meetings? Can you stop drinking, with ease, following one or two drinks? Have you ever gotten in trouble at work because of your drinking? Or lost a friend because of drinking? The survey also asks if you have ever been hospitalized or committed to a mental health clinic due to the excessive drinking. MAST survey respondents are asked to answer the questions based on events and information from the last 12 months.

Questions on the MAST diagnose the impact of your drinking on your family life, work and relationships. The MAST survey is scored by allocating a number of points per question answered with a “yes” response. The responses are tallied and an information page is provided to the test taker based on where the total falls in a range of scores. The MAST can be taken online and the results are completely anonymous and not recorded. Naturally, the higher the number of “yes” responses on the MSAT indicates the likelihood of a severe problem with alcohol dependence. The self-assessments do not replace the full testing and diagnosis that should be performed by health care professional.

There are other self-assessment and diagnostic alcoholism tests available to the public. Shorter tests have been developed for initial and emergency care situations. The shorter tests may not be as accurate as longer tests or assessments made by health care professionals, but they can help a person determine if they have a problem and prompt them to seek more in-depth care. Because denial is a typical problem in assessing alcoholism, the questions in these self-assessments do not ask questions about how much a person drinks, but rather about the problems related to the drinking habits. Coined “common sense” questions, the direct questions in the self-assessments are designed to trigger the thinking that if you have to take the test or answer the questions with a “yes,” response you are likely to have a problem with alcohol dependence.

One of the most commonly used shorter tests is the “CAGE” test. C - Have you ever felt you should cut down on your drinking? A - Have people annoyed you by criticizing your drinking? G - Have you ever felt bad or guilty about your drinking? E - Eye opener: Have you ever had a drink first thing in the morning to steady your nerves or to get rid of a hangover? A “yes” response to two of the CAGE questions indicates a problem with alcohol. There are several variations of the CAGE test, for instance the T-ACE test, with similar questions.

Self-assessments or online questionnaires cannot substitute for the testing and diagnosis performed by a health care professional. However, taking a self-assessment can signal a problem and help people seek appropriate care. In addition, health care professionals may perform genetic testing to demonstrate a genetic pre-disposition to alcoholism.