2008 Woodie Awards
Collegate drinking an unhealthy practice in more ways than one
Michael Hilal
Issue date: 5/13/05 Section: Opinion
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As we move further along in college careers the idea of drinking becomes more predominant. It's not necessarily a bad thing; it's one of those things that we will do, our older siblings probably did it, as well as our parents. It's almost a time-honored tradition that goes hand-in-hand with college, as important as the actual books.
As a college student you almost have to have one of those nights that you might actually not remember the next day. When I think of college and binge drinking, the thought of some obnoxious fraternity boy yelling "Jager Shots!" or "Slam it!" comes into mind.
When I began writing this I was going to go in a completely different direction; my thought was college, binge drinking, fraternity, and light humored drinking antics, a no-brainer. The information I found while I was researching was too interesting not to address; the number of young women drinking to excess on a regular basis has more then doubled over the last decade.
According to The Office for National Statistics (ONS), their figures show that increases in the proportion of the population drinking above recommended levels, what would be considered binge drinking, since the late 1980s had almost entirely been due to rises among women.
The statistical information shows that the proportion of women exceeding the weekly benchmark of 14 alcoholic beverages increased from 10 percent in 1988/89 to 17 percent in 2002/03, compared to a rise from 26 percent to 27 percent among men, with recommended levels of 21 drinks.
Increases were most marked among younger women, aged 16 to 24, where the proportion exceeding the benchmark more than doubled from 15 percent to 33 percent over the same period. This was quite a bit higher compared to an increase from 31 percent to 37 percent among young men of the same age.
Binge drinking among women and the younger, more "independent lady" culture have recently been blamed for rises in anti-social behavior and alcohol-related crime.
As a college student you almost have to have one of those nights that you might actually not remember the next day. When I think of college and binge drinking, the thought of some obnoxious fraternity boy yelling "Jager Shots!" or "Slam it!" comes into mind.
When I began writing this I was going to go in a completely different direction; my thought was college, binge drinking, fraternity, and light humored drinking antics, a no-brainer. The information I found while I was researching was too interesting not to address; the number of young women drinking to excess on a regular basis has more then doubled over the last decade.
According to The Office for National Statistics (ONS), their figures show that increases in the proportion of the population drinking above recommended levels, what would be considered binge drinking, since the late 1980s had almost entirely been due to rises among women.
The statistical information shows that the proportion of women exceeding the weekly benchmark of 14 alcoholic beverages increased from 10 percent in 1988/89 to 17 percent in 2002/03, compared to a rise from 26 percent to 27 percent among men, with recommended levels of 21 drinks.
Increases were most marked among younger women, aged 16 to 24, where the proportion exceeding the benchmark more than doubled from 15 percent to 33 percent over the same period. This was quite a bit higher compared to an increase from 31 percent to 37 percent among young men of the same age.
Binge drinking among women and the younger, more "independent lady" culture have recently been blamed for rises in anti-social behavior and alcohol-related crime.