Binge Drinking

(Image from http://billeestanton.files.wordpress.com/2009/04/binge_drinking1.jpg)




Binge drinking is a process in which you drink a large amount of alcohol within a small period of time. Binge drinking is something that, according to the NHS, one third of adults participate in often. Some do it to feel more relaxed, others do it because they do not know their limits, and some drink due to depression. The Institute of Alcohol Studies showed that youngsters in Britain are the biggest binge drinkers in Europe. The Joseph Rowntree Foundation also found that over 50% of fifteen to sixteen year olds have admitted to binge drinking. So what is it about drinking appeals to so many people? Is it the fact that to young people, as with smoking, it makes them look 'cool'?

There are many dangers of binge drinking, some being more obvious than others. You are more prone to danger would be the first that comes to mind. Although falling a grazing your knee may be hilarious when you're drunk (most things are hilarious when drunk), the danger could be much more serious. For example alcohol slows down your reaction time and awareness of what is around you. If you were crossing the road and didn't look you may be hit by a car, which would take the sense of danger to a whole new level. It is thought that as many as 30% of accidents occur when someone is drunk, which at almost one third, is massive.

For those who are vain it can also damage your hair and skin. Alcohol dehydrates you, which in return means your skin is also dehydrated, causing you to be more prone to wrinkles. The other danger it can do to your health is obvious; it can damage your liver. Alcohol can ultimately cause cirrhosis, which is an incurable disease that overlooks your liver turning into scar tissue. As your liver is a vital organ in your body, living without it is simply not possible. Blood pressure can also be affected, as well as your kidneys. Alcohol, according to the BBC, is the cause of 22,000 premature deaths a year, which is a huge figure.

Binge drinking affects the way you think. Some turn happy, some turn hyper and worst of all some turn nasty. From watching every student's favourite programme, Jeremy Kyle, it is easy to say that drinking causes violence, as drinking clouds your mind. You have all been out on a Saturday night and seen a fight. Alcohol causes this, with 50% of street crime being due to a drunken person, and around 1.2 million alcohol related violence occurs each year. It does not only cause violence, but on a personal level, many embarass themselves. How many times have you woken up and thought 'what was I doing?' or even woken up next to someone you don't even know? This can also result in other health aspects such as sexually transmitted infections or unwanted pregnancy.

The Home Office have done much to try to combat this problem. I, as many of you, probably moaned when all inclusive alcohol nights were banned as of April 2010. However is this really a solution? Not only does it cause some clubs to close in an already bad economic crisis, it doesn't stop clubs from offering an 'alternative' cheap way to purchase drinks in their premises. For example, a club near me back in Wales used to run £10 all inclusive on a Saturday night. Now, instead, with the new law, they offer 10 drinks for £10. Is it really a solution? What can the government do to crack down on binge drinking? According to the BBC, binge drinking costs Britain twenty billion a year in. Is it really worth risking our health and well being for one 'good' night?


Read more on binge drinking from the BBC and an interesting website I found below:-

BBC:- http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/3121440.stm
Binge drinking:- http://www.thesite.org/drinkanddrugs/drinking/problems/bingedrinking