International Council on Alcohol and Addictions

The International Council on Alcohol and Addictions (ICAA) is an international organization that has evolved from a total opposition to any drinking to advocating for an objective consideration of alcohol-related problems. Formerly known as the International Bureau Against Alcoholism, it was renamed the International Council on Alcohol and Alcoholism in 1964 and later became the ICAA. This shift reflects a move towards deriving objective information from scientific sources, influenced by the establishment of institutions like the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism in the United States. The organization's congresses, once focused on denouncing alcohol's evils, now include scientific and academic presentations, mirroring a broader trend in understanding addiction as a complex issue rather than solely a vice.1