Contents
Representatives of all nationalities suffer from alcoholism, but for the northern peoples this disease has become a real national disaster. Russian scientists believe that the rapid formation of alcohol dependence among the indigenous inhabitants of the Far North is influenced by a whole set of factors, including genetic predisposition, dietary habits and social problems.
Alcoholism and genetics
The neutralization of alcohol takes place in the liver, which produces two enzymes: alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) and acetaldehyde dehydrogenase (ACDH). As soon as the first dose of ethanol enters the bloodstream, the body begins to work on its withdrawal. Under the action of enzymes, alcohol is broken down into harmless acetic acid and acetaldehyde, a highly toxic element that is slowly excreted from tissues, destroys internal organs and causes a hangover.
The liver is able to process no more than 30 g of strong alcohol per hour, the rest enters the bloodstream and causes a feeling of intoxication. Tolerance to alcohol depends on the individual characteristics of the body. The higher the amount and rate of production of degrading enzymes, the less ethanol affects the brain and the lower the chances of addiction to alcohol.
Among the northern peoples, the tendency to alcoholism is closely related to their traditional diet. For centuries, the inhabitants of the tundra have been eating foods rich in protein and fat, which helped them to endure low temperatures more easily, promoted wound healing, and formed resistance to cardiovascular diseases and cancer. At the same time, the absence of carbohydrates in the diet has affected the fact that the enzymes that break down alcohol in the body of the inhabitants of the Far North are produced in insufficient quantities.
The population of Italy, France, Spain, Transcaucasia has an opposite picture. The abundance of vegetables, fruits, as well as a rich culture of winemaking contributed to the formation of a high rate of alcohol breakdown in the body, which gradually began to be inherited. Resistance to ethanol was also affected by the lack of habit of strong alcohol. For example, in France, the average annual alcohol consumption per person is not much less than in Russia, but most of the drinks are dry wines.
Traditions of drinking alcohol in the northern regions of Russia
Alcohol among the northern peoples was not in use for a long time. Historical documents mention the tradition of the Tungus and Kalmyks to make koumiss from mare’s and cow’s milk. The maximum strength of the drink reached only 3% and in order to get drunk, it had to be drunk a lot. In any case, koumiss caused only a feeling of relaxation and drowsiness, and due to the lack of milk, its production was not so widespread.
Information has been preserved about the production of Araki by the peoples of South Siberia – milk vodka. Fermented milk was poured into a flat iron, covered with a wooden lid and heated over a fire. As a result, an alcoholic drink with a strength of about 20 degrees was obtained, which flowed through a drain pipe into a substituted vessel.
Braga from grain was placed only in areas that were not far from Russian settlements. The indigenous people of the North borrowed technology from their neighbors and made an intoxicating drink from millet or crushed rye or wheat grain. The strength of the mash was insignificant, and production volumes were extremely low.
Drunkenness among the peoples of Siberia at the beginning of the XNUMXth century was practically not widespread and was of a seasonal nature. In summer, they made more koumiss, but in winter, the production of milk brew stopped. The sale of vodka among the indigenous peoples during this period was strictly prohibited. A Senate decree has survived that ordered the expedition of Vitus Bering to change vodka for furs from the inhabitants of Kamchatka, but at the same time strictly supervise that the people do not overdo it with alcohol and drink themselves to death.
The alcohol trade and large-scale drinking of the local population began at the end of the XNUMXth century, when the cost of two beaver skins began to be equated to a bottle of vodka. Horns and reindeer meat were exchanged for alcohol, and alcohol among the Chukchi was in great demand as a means of payment. The Americans also made their contribution to the alcoholization of Chukotka, who sailed on merchant ships from Alaska and often stayed for the winter to procure furs.
In Soviet times, active development of the Far North began. Modern methods of hunting and fishing were introduced, food and manufactured goods were delivered from the mainland. The local population worked in state farms, which were engaged in animal husbandry, fur harvesting and fishing. They tried to limit the sale of alcohol. In settlements with the status of “national” alcohol was imported no more than once or twice a month, but these days were followed by massive drinking bouts.
Social problems of our time
Over the past decades, the alcoholization of the inhabitants of the northern regions of Russia has reached terrifying proportions. In 2014, experts spoke about the catastrophic reduction of small ethnic groups and the threat of complete extinction of the indigenous population of a number of regions. For example, the number of registered alcoholics in Yamal has reached 7 people per half a million people, which is 20% higher than the national figure.
Experts attribute this situation to a change in the way of life of small nationalities. If in Soviet times most of the population was employed in fishing and reindeer farms, then the decline of the economy during perestroika led to the fact that almost all collective farms ceased to exist. There has been a large outflow of the population from the indigenous habitats to the villages, where there are much more opportunities for drunkenness.
Due to the peculiarities of metabolism, the tundra population almost instantly develops addiction to alcohol, and the harm from immoderate libations is much more pronounced. There is a rapid deterioration of all body systems, mental disorders develop. As a result, the mortality of the peoples of the Far North from alcohol exceeds the figures for other Russian regions by 15–20 times.
Experience has shown that bans on the sale of alcoholic beverages only have a positive effect for a short time and lead to an increase in the underground production of surrogates. Narcologists believe that it is necessary to solve the problem of alcoholism of the peoples of the Far North not only with treatment, but also with the purposeful work of social services and public organizations, taking into account knowledge of ethnic psychology.