Most students think that college is the time to party. You may have fewer commitments, more leisure time and no parental guidance; that sounds like an awesome time, right? Well living it up in college doesn’t necessarily mean you have to spend it binge drinking. Sure, that peer pressure mom warned you about is tough to ignore in college. Plus, some parties can be socially awkward, and you may cling to the beer can to become more outgoing. While heavy drinking may seem like a necessary college pastime, it comes with several risks:
Your wallet: you probably thought it was just the books and tuition that broke your bank, but you can plan on spending $25 to $50 a night boozing it up at a club.
Weight gain: If you’re trying to lose the “freshman 15”, binge drinking isn’t going to help. There’s roughly 750 calories in 5 cans of beer and 2500 in 5 margaritas.
Alcohol poisoning: Drinking can be fatal. Alcohol poisoning can land you in the hospital and some of its dangers including dehydration, hypothermia, choking on your own vomit, and even death.
Bad grades: If that bio chem test wasn’t hard enough, try taking it when you’re hungover. One-quarter of college students admit that their grades have suffered due to late-night drinking.
Sexual assault: Young women are at a high risk of being assaulted, and that risk increases when alcohol is introduced into the equation. Roughly 100,000 students, between the ages of 18-24, are sexually assaulted or date raped each year.
Remember that binge drinking is considered consuming about four drinks in two hours for men, and about three drinks in two hours for women. So if you plan on drinking, know your limit. Find out your blood alcohol content, but even more importantly, you need to realize when you’ve crossed the line between losing your inhibitions and losing control. Be smart, and have a sober friend tag along. Let them know that you want to be warned when you’ve had way too much to drink.
Via Suite 101
Also Read:
New Campaign Encourages Realistic View of College Drinking
Drunkorexia: New Eating Disorder on the Rise
Colleges do Little to Stop Binge Drinking
posted on August 13th, 2010
by Jessie, Staff Writer
Tags: alcohol, alcohol poisoning, binge drinking, freshman 15, party
Posted in Campus Life, Health | 5 Comments »
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