Men and women respond differently to alcohol because of differences in their body weight, percentage of body fat, first-pass metabolism of alcohol, immune system and hormones.

In general, women are more sensitive to alcohol than men. In addition to the usual consequences, alcoholism in women causes specific health problems, notably serious risks during pregnancy: maternal alcoholism is the largest avoidable cause of mental retardation in newborn infants in the western world.
Alcohol crosses the placenta easily, thus passing from mother to child. The consequences vary, depending on the level and duration of drinking during pregnancy, and include spontaneous abortion, premature labour, still births, malformations and retarded physical and mental development. These manifestations are known under the term "Foetal Alcohol Syndrome". Female alcoholism is often associated with depression.

Different studies show that drinking of alcohol by adolescents is very common, but is not predictive of adult alcoholism. However, youngsters from families with a history of alcoholism have a considerably higher risk of becoming alcoholic in adult life if they drink heavily in adolescence. An increased risk of road accidents is one of the most serious immediate consequences of alcohol consumption in the young (see Alcohol and driving).

Alcohol consumption encourages some young people to commit criminal offences (see Alcohol and violence).

Although the prevalence of alcohol consumption and alcohol abuse decreases with age, alcoholism in elderly people remains a significant public health problem. This is an increasingly important consideration, because a large demographic expansion of this group of individuals is expected in the next few years. Almost 10% of those over 65 years of age have a problem with alcohol abuse.