Alcohol is more dangerous than illegal drugs like heroin and crack cocaine, according to a new study。

　　British experts evaluated substances including alcohol, cocaine, heroin, ecstasy and marijuana, ranking them based on how destructive they are to the individual who takes them and to society as a whole。

　　Researchers analyzed how addictive a drug is and how it harms the human body, in addition to other criteria like environmental damage caused by the drug, its role in breaking up families and its economic costs, such as health care, social services, and prison. Heroin, crack cocaine and methamphetamine, or crystal meth, were the most lethal to individuals。

　　When considering their wider social effects, alcohol, heroin and crack cocaine were the deadliest. But overall, alcohol outranked all other substances, followed by heroin and crack cocaine。

　　Experts said alcohol scored so high because it is widely used and has devastating consequences not only for drinkers but for those around them. When drunk in excess, alcohol damages nearly all organ systems. It is also connected to higher death rates and is involved in a greater percentage of crime than most other drugs, including heroin。

　　美国《时代》周刊31日报道，据最新研究显示，酒精的危害性极大，甚至超过海洛因以及快克可卡因(高纯度可卡因毒品)。

　　来自英国的专家们评估了诸如酒精、可卡因、海洛因、致幻剂以及大麻等物质，并基于个体和社会受到的危害对它们进行了排名。

　　研究人员除了分析毒品上瘾程度和对人类身体的损伤程度，还将毒品造成的环境破坏、家庭破裂以及毒品的经济成本(如医疗费用、社会服务费用和牢狱之灾等相关费用)列入考察标准。结果发现，海洛因、高纯度可卡因以及脱氧麻黄碱(一种中枢兴奋药，亦称“冰毒”)对于个体而言最为致命。

　　在考虑它们更广泛的社会影响时，酒精、海洛因和高纯度可卡因危害性最大。但综合起来，酒精的危害性最大，其次是海洛因，高纯度可卡因第三。

　　专家分析称酒精排名如此之高，不仅因为其被人们广泛使用，也由于酒精不仅对酗酒者本人不利，还伤及其身边人士。而过度饮酒几乎会伤害到全身所有器官和系统。酒精还和高死亡率相关，而与大部分毒品(包括海洛因)相比，过度饮酒还会导致更高的犯罪率。