Last Updated on December 10, 2019 by Valarie Ward

Did you drink when you were in college? Even if you didn’t attend college, did anyone ever offer you alcohol before you were 21? The challenge with many teens as they enter college is avoiding the things they shouldn’t do while trying to fit in and navigate college life. As you can imagine, it’s not easy. Whether most college students are pressured by their peers or simply want to try substances for themselves to satisfy their own curiosity, alcohol is inevitably one of those things college students indulge in and in too many cases, over indulge.

The fact is,

40% of High School Students

admitted they have consumed alcohol. And 22% of high school seniors have reported episodes of heavy drinking or binge drinking.

If that doesn’t surprise you, consider this:

Nearly 700,000 of College Students

are assaulted by fellow students who have been drinking.

These numbers were published by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) as part of an ongoing research study about alcohol use and abuse on college campuses and young adults between 18 and 24 (See: A Call to Action: Changing the Culture of Drinking at U.S. Colleges). The Task Force assigned to these case studies have published data from their findings that go back as far as 1998. Most of the research involved surveys from not only the college students, but also faculty and community advocates in college towns.

The Problem: When Drinking on College Campuses Goes To Far

Aside from the occasional reports of noisy parties or the few deaths we hear about that are caused by alcohol poisonings, the public is not very aware of the real problems that exist when the use alcohol is not controlled among college students. This sentiment was expressed in the Call To Action, indicating that the problems and consequences of college age student drinking is much more than occasional, with an increasing number of injuries, deaths, assaults and other incidents happening every year on just about every college campus in the world. Could it be we have been overlooking this wide-spread problem because drinking alcohol is an “acceptable” thing to do?

Take a Look at the Problems with Alcohol Abuse On College Campuses:

• Binge Drinking. Studies show that half of college student drinkers engage in heavy episodic consumption, also known as binge drinking. By definition, binge drinking happens when a person drinks 4-5 alcoholic beverages in a row. Too much alcohol at one times leads to intoxication, delusion and limits brain functions.
• Alcohol Poisoning. The National Institute of Health defines Alcohol Poisoning as a condition where there is, “so much alcohol in the bloodstream that areas of the brain controlling basic life support functions—such as breathing, heart rate, and temperature control—begin to shut down. Symptoms of alcohol poisoning include difficulty remaining conscious, vomiting, seizures, trouble with breathing and slow heart rate.”
• Rapes. The NIAAA’s most recent student reported almost 98,000 rapes that occurred when students were under the influence of alcohol each year.
• Accidents and Injuries. Over 700,000 assaults, accidents and injuries are reported each year, caused by college students who were intoxicated.
• DWI or Drunk Driving. 3,360,000 students between the ages of 18 and 24 drive under the influence of alcohol (Hingson et al., 2009).
• Deaths. ,825 college students between the ages of 18 and 24 die from alcohol-related unintentional injuries, including motor vehicle crashes (Hingson et al., 2009).
• Underage Drinking. Since the legal drinking age is 21, many students are at risk for getting into trouble with the law if they get caught buying or drinking alcohol before they are of age.
• Drop in Grades or Attendance. About 25 percent of college students report academic consequences of their drinking including missing class, falling behind, doing poorly on exams or papers, and receiving lower grades overall (Engs et al., 1996; Presley et al., 1996a, 1996b; Wechsler et al., 2002). The Core Institutereports 31% of college students missed a class due to substance abuse, 22% failed an assignment. The study also reported that because of alcohol or substance abuse, about 160,000 freshmen will leave school altogether.

Do you see the dangers involved with too much of an uncontrolled, readily available substance? The costs are higher than you think when you consider the impact this has on the community. If you have a student in college or know one, please share this information with them.

For more resources and the most recent studies published by government organizations and advocacy groups, visit the following sites.

Resources

• National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA)’s Call To Action: Changing the Culture of Drinking At US Colleges
• NIAAA Overview of Alcohol Consumption: College Drinking
• Core Institute

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