there are many reasons why alcoholism is more common in some areas than others. some of these reasons include religion, culture, laws, and people's attitudes about drinking. for example, on average, people in northern africa, the middle east, and islands in the indian ocean drink less than people anywhere else in the world.p.4 these are areas where many people are muslims. many muslims in these areas do not drink any alcohol, because the koran says not to.p.4 in some of these countries, drinking alcohol is illegal.