Most colleges and universities around the world are no strangers when it comes to their students and binge-drinking problems. Sure, students are there to receive an education, but along with academics, athletics and extracurricular activities usually come partying, this is where alcohol comes in.

Several schools are located close to bars or liquor stores and act as a host to keg parties, excessive drinking games, day drinking festivities and crazy booze filled spring break vacations.

So what exactly is binge drinking, and why is it so prevalent in young adults? According to About.com, substance abuse can be defined as “a pattern of harmful use of any substance for mood-alternating purposes while binge-drinking is considered to have five or more drinks for men and four or more drinks for women in less than a two-hour time span.”

Unfortunately, the range of “substance abuse” is going above and beyond with young adults as they are branching out from excessive drinking and experimenting with prescription drugs. Substance abuse is on the rise as young adults are experimenting with pills either by ingesting or snorting them.

The problem with this is that most young adults think that only illegal drugs are considered to be a substance abuse problem. But statistics are revealing that alcohol is extremely prevalent and abused by young adults, and while alcohol is legal for those over 21, it is also considered more deadly than other drugs. According to AboveTheInfluence.com, “alcohol kills more teens than any other illegal drug combined.Every year, nearly 5,000 people under the age of 21 will die as a result of alcohol consumption.”

While many believe it helps you to calm down or relax, an excessive intake can cause loss of coordination, memory, judgment and the ability to make rational decisions as well as slow down your reaction time. According to a study conducted by Virginia Tech’s AlcoholAbusePreventionCenter, alcohol first affects the part of the brain that controls your inhibitions.

Between having a blood alcohol content of .06-.10 the effects include impaired sexual pleasure, reasoning and depth perception. Once a person’s BAC reaches between the ranges of .11-.20 the body reacts with effects of emotional swings, staggering and slurred speech.

Between having a BAC of .21-.39, this is where death becomes possible, one loses understanding, loses consciousness, blacks out and breathing, heart rate and bladder function become a concern at this point. According to Urban75.com, statistics show that alcohol gives you a loss of inhibition. College students have admitted to engaging in activities and the use of other drugs which they would not have other wise done if they had not been under the influence of alcohol.

Men are more likely to become aggressive and confrontational under the influence of excessive alcohol use while women are often likely to be more vulnerable to sexual assault. And according to CBS News Health Watch, “colleges and universities with higher rates of binge drinking also have more rapes.” Additionally, “nearly three-quarters of rape victims reported being intoxicated at the time of the attack.”

As of 2011, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, while college students commonly binge drink, 70% of binge drinking episodes involve people 26 years of age or older.

To receive more information on binge-drinking and alcoholism, or if you think you might struggle with a drinking problem, please visit www.alcoholscreening.org for a free assessment test. And if you feel your drinking is out of control, please visit www.drugrehabcenter.com in order to seek help.

The article College Students and Binge-Drinking: What You May Not Know appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

Modern day perspectives are changing, with recent years focusing on binge-drinking throwing up alarming statistics. Predominantly throughout Europe, the younger drinking age seems to go hand in hand with the excessive rise in alcohol related incidents.

The figures relating to the topic make interesting reading, with a 2006 report from the USA stating that almost 80,000 people a year throughout the nation die as a result of excessive alcohol consumption. This statistic has cost the United States a shocking $223.5 billion. Such appalling stats continue, with a more recent study, published in January 2012 reporting that 50.9% of people over the age of 18 admit to being regular drinkers, as opposed to just 13.6% of the same age denying it.

Further numbers highlight the global stigma of the problem, with both America and England falling victim to a mortality rate of thousands related to alcohol a year. Whether it be directly linked to excessive alcohol intake or even alcohol abuse, the facts are present and make unpleasant reading.

However, alcohol addiction and binge-drinking amongst younger adults is a recognized issue, while underlying matters exist and remain un-tackled. Drug abuse among the age 18-25 throughout both Europe and America is on the verge of becoming a bigger issue now than in recent years.

Many teenagers and young adults are turning towards drugs in the search for euphoria in the nightlife, with several different forms available, each slightly different if ultimately reaching the same goal.

Through my University, I was able to speak to a young gentleman who openly admits to both excessively drinking alcohol and abusing drugs when on nights out and social events.

The individual will be referred to as ‘John’ but his identity is known by Toonari Post. He spoke openly and honestly during the interview, confessing to his substance abuse.

Toonari Post (TP): When did you have your first alcoholic drink?

John: I would have said i was about 15, but i wouldnt say i started drinking heavily ’til i was around 16/17 and managed to get my brothers I.D.

TP: Did you find it easy to get alcohol?

John: With I.D saying i was 19, even though I was 16/17 it was easy, no-one ever questioned it, shop keepers were all more than willing to make the sale.

TP: When was it that you first took drugs?

John: The summer before my move to University was the first time i experiemented with drugs. Several of my friends often took MDMA, M-cat and pills and had no side effects. They used to go on about how ‘good’ it was and how i should experience it.

TP: How accessible are drugs?

John: Extremely easy to get hold of. We went away on a lads holiday and didnt even drink much whilst we were away because drugs were so easy get hold of and surprisingly cheap too.

TP: Why do you continue to take drugs as opposed to drink alcohol?

John: Drugs are cheaper, simple. The high you get from taking drugs/pills is totally different to drinking. Alcohol leaves you bloated, lethargic and feeling horrendous the next morning. Drugs have a different effect all together, much more enjoyable from personal experience.

TP: Are you not afraid of long term effects? Addiction for example? 

John: As a university student, i have four years on my course, then i’ll head out in to the world of work and I presume I will have matured by then, but for now, I’m just living my life as it comes, and going out and having a good time is part of that.

TP: Do many of your friends take drugs? Is it a recreational habit for you all?

John: We all do it together yeah, but when i moved to university it was something i had in common with alot of people, and we just went from there.

TP: What about the risks of what you’re actually taking? How can you know for sure?

John: You can’t be 100% sure, but with alcohol becoming more expensive and drugs so easily accessible, making you feel better and becoming much cheaper, you can’t complain.

TP: How do you feel knowing that over 50 people this year alone have died from taking such substances as MDMA and M-Cat?

John: It does make you think twice, but aswell as thinking of the bad effects you think about how good it feels when you take them. You feel on top of the world. Yeah it does scare me everytime i take any kind of drug but then again once I do, it feels good, so it all balances out in my eyes.

TP: How much would you spend on a night out, if you were just taking drugs?

John: Depends what drugs you are buying. Class A’s such as cocaine cost around £40 a gram normally, but others such as m-cat are around £20 a gram. So if you work out how much you’d spend on alcohol rather than to drugs, drugs are the cheaper and in many peoples eyes, the better choice.

Recession to blame

The tough economic climate has hit hard in more ways than you can imagine. Increasing prices of alcohol, rather than deterring youngsters from excessively indulging in alcohol, is forcing their hand in other directions, encouraging drugs abuse.

The factors add up, and despite the last decade or so being dominated by a culture obsessed with binge-drinking, increasing levels of peer pressure, alongside falling economic stability, all seem to be lending themselves to the trend that sees more and more young adults turn to drugs as opposed to alcohol.

In order for these potential disasters to be averted, younger children must receive better education concerning substance abuse from an earlier age. The current generations, with its ‘party-university’ mentality that for the majority revolves around having a good time, are still able prevent further damage, to themselves and society.

If not, this culture has the unfortunate potential of influencing younger generations, which highlights the argument for more information to younger children, teenagers and even younger adults, the age range where these issues lie.

The article Party Culture UK: How Drugs Become the Alternative to Drinking appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

Like most cities, Belfast has had its fair share of troubling statistics and unfortunate public embarrassments when it comes to substance abuse among young adults. Just last week, major universities in the city had circulated emails to their entire student bodies in the run-up to St. Patrick’s Day, with the Student Union President at Queen’s University Belfast writing:

If you happen to be in the University area over the weekend please remember your responsibilities as a member of the South Belfast Community and be aware that as a student of Queen’s you fall under the auspices of the University’s Conduct Regulations.

This type of advisory email followed several years of well-publicised displays of disorderly conduct among a select group of young adults in student housing areas of the city. Years past have seen excessive and unmoderated drinking lead to physical altercations, verbal abuse, graffiti and property damage, police involvement, and consequently the expulsion of several students from their respective university institutions.

As a result, this year students at Queen’s were given a 4-day weekend over St. Patrick’s Day, in the hope that a longer break would encourage some to travel outside the city or to return home, away from the influence of those who were most likely to cause public disturbances. This measure seems to have been relatively effective, with The Irish Times reporting:

A substantial police presence, together with a zero-tolerance approach to on-street drinking, appeared to keep the situation under control.

On Friday, eight people were arrested in the area for a range of anti-social behaviour. But by 9.30pm yesterday, the streets of the Holyland, although littered with broken glass, were quiet and virtually empty, with just a few house parties going on behind closed doors.

Unfortunately, 2012 has already seen alcohol-related tragedy among the youth community. In February, 20-year old Joby Murphy accidentally fell into the River Lagan due to poor safety measures at the Lagan Weir bridge.

Murphy had attended a Snow Patrol concert that same night, and then drank £1 vodka shots prior to his fall, leading to his father getting involved with a campaign to ban certain drinks promotions around the city, namely ones that offer ‘All You Can Drink’ deals at significantly reduced prices. Such deals are common in Belfast bars and clubs frequented by students, and it is thought that banning them would go some way to discouraging young adults from binge drinking.

However, some have criticised such a proposition for being an ineffective way to teach young adults about the dangers of alcohol. The general mentality is, if someone wants to find alcohol at a cheap price then they will not have to look very far to find some.

Facebook even offers ‘Dial A Drink’ services, where businesses will deliver alcohol straight to your doorstep without ensuring that no minors in the house will be drinking, so it is clear that Belfast, like so many other UK cities, has not yet figured out how to measurably regulate alcohol consumption among younger people.

Murphy’s father is still pushing ahead with hopes of making the Lagan Weir bridge more secure and better equipped to deal with accidental falls, but at the moment he seems to be one active voice facing a larger community deaf to the seriousness of this drinking subculture.

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Heavy drinking is a big issue among adolescents around the world. There are many factors that affect alcohol consumption: cultural, economic, familiar, education and social environment are those most frequently analyzed by experts.

Countries usually have a minimum age limit for selling, purchasing, and consuming alcohol. In most European countries it is 18 years or less, whereas in the United States it is 21. The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) reports nine countries which have a complete ban on alcohol: Afghanistan, Brunei Darussalam, the Islamic Republic of Iran, Maldives, Mauritania, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Somalia and Sudan.

NIAAA also reveals some interesting relationships between teenagers and alcohol. The world’s highest alcohol consumption levels are found in the developed world, including Eastern Europe, while parts of Africa and Asia show the lowest average consumption. In all countries, teenage males are more likely to drink alcohol than females. Religion is cited as the key reason behind low alcohol consumption and high rates of abstinence in Muslim countries.

College campuses are known to be places that encourage adolescents to drink. They are expected to act responsibly, but in many cases this is a naïve assumption because parents’ education, media and social network exposure, and other influences college may bring are not taken into account. Adolescents are also unaware of the negative effects drinking can have on themselves and those around them.

Education

Parents play a fundamental role and are key to the education of teenagers as responsible drinkers. There are two extremes: youngsters who have too much freedom who start to drink with their friends with no understanding of how their bodies will react to alcohol; and teenagers who were strictly prohibited from drinking alcohol by their parents until they reach legal age, who then drink heavily of what was denied them before.

The ideal scenario would be a parent who can teach his or her children how to drink responsibly when they are around 16 years of age. For instance, parents can allow a small glass of wine or a beer to their son or daughter at dinner time once a week. This way the teenager will realize how his or her body copes with alcohol, so he or she can be wise enough to know when to stop in the future.

But this is not the case. If you observe how adolescents drink on a night out, you will notice their immaturity. They break common sense of safe drinking; first by drinking large quantities very quickly — second, by combining spirits, beer, and wine which results in the worst hangover, and third by forgetting to drink enough water to keep from dehydrating.

College and University Influence

Many students leave their homes and move to others cities to be closer to the college campuses. Without the supervision of their parents, students get a lot of freedom that can get out of hand. They celebrate their weekends with parties at private homes, residence halls, clubs, and pubs.

Scholars drink for many reasons: novelty, fun, peer pressure, experimentation, escapism from stress, and the need to ‘fit in’. Many college students drink to make social interactions more comfortable, so drinking competitions are very popular around the campus. The paradox is that the losers are rewarded with more drinks, making the day after the real punishment.

Media and Social Network Exposure

Alcoholic beverages are advertised on television and radio, in print and on the Internet so the temptation for teenagers to drink is everywhere. Social networks may be the worst culprits. Adolescents use Facebook or Twitter to upload alcohol-related images, providing a socially accepted way of sharing their drinking experiences among themselves.

They derive personal satisfaction by their peers’ comments and even gain respect, measured in pints and hours. Social networks create an indirect niche for alcoholic drinks by promoting logos and links to brands. Therefore, the use of social networks construct social norms around alcohol, for instance by the uploading of alcohol-related pictures and jokes.

Movies depicting college parties or even ‘The Simpsons’ with the characterisation of drinkers like Homer and Barney can incite teenagers to imitate what they see. Celebrity alcohol use is also a key feature of the entertainment media’s access to young people.

Effects on the Drinkers and Society

The harmful use of alcohol increases the risk of death, disease, and injury. Alcohol dependence in drinkers leads to health problems such as cirrhosis of the liver, and cancer. Drunk-driving and domestic violence are other linked behavior of problem drinkers. According to the report Global Status Report on Alcohol and Health 2011, alcohol’s harmful effects result in approximately 2.5 million deaths each year.

The impact of alcohol also causes harm to the well-being and health of others. Diseases and injuries from alcohol have negative social effects and increases medical costs, which are force-fed to governments and families. The drinkers’ habits affect important roles and responsibilities of everyday life: work, family, friendship, and public character.

Binge drinking is associated with major health problems like alcohol poisoning, sexual malfunction, unintended pregnancies, and high blood pressure. When an adolescent gets intoxicated, it interferes with his or her productivity, resulting in missed classes, and absences or lateness at work because they must take time out to recover from their drinker’s mistakes.

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