New study shows heavy student drinking unchanged

Students looking for a cheap way to spend their weekend are in luck; a 12 pack of beer can cost as little as $5. A cup of coffee, on the other hand, costs around $3 and a single movie ticket for the evening costs a student $10.
According to Toben Nelson, University of Minnesota professor in epidemiology and community health, cheap and easily accessible alcohol is one of the many factors contributing to the heavy drinking problem plaguing American universities.
Nelson published an article in September’s issue of The Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs entitled “Persistence of Heavy Drinking and Ensuing Consequences at Heavy Drinking Colleges,” which found that 18 heavy-drinking universities failed to improve high drinking levels since 1993.
The study’s participating colleges remain confidential, but the relevance is certainly present at the University of Minnesota.
According to the study, key characteristics of high-drinking universities include an emphasis on competitive athletics and locations in the northeast or north central United States.
Nelson speculated geographic alcohol consumption may be due to cultural and historical regional differences.
The 2008 Health and Health-Related Behavior survey performed by Boynton Health Service said 36.2 percent of 18- to 22-year-olds and 46.1 percent of 21- to 25-year-olds engage in binge drinking, defined as consuming five or more alcoholic beverages consecutively in the past two weeks.
“Binge drinking is so much of a problem that it doesn’t even seem like a big deal anymore,” first-year student Heidi Chung said. “It’s become so common, it seems normal.”
Vice Provost for Student Affairs Jerry Rinehart and President Robert Bruininks plan to discuss the issue, Rinehart said, but specific community action plans still “remain to be seen.”
“We’ve been doing almost everything that’s been proven to be effective. But alcohol problems on campus are really not a campus problem; they’re a community, state, and, for us, an Upper-Midwest problem.”
Nelson said he also thinks the answer to curbing binge drinking may lay with both the community and University.
Increasing alcohol taxes, reducing density of alcohol outlets and working with local bars on drink specials that “promote high volume with low cost” are some of the steps Nelson believes could break the binge-drinking cycle.
“Colleges and college communities have not done a wide-spread enactment of these kinds of interventions,” Nelson said. “I’d love to see the U take some leadership on that.”
Many students drink to relieve stress or socialize, Boynton program director Dana Farley said.
“It’s kind of a group thing,” second-year psychology major Meghan Wallace said. “You have to be drinking and, at some point, you either are drunk or pretend to be drunk to fit in.”
The University has implemented several programs in an attempt to curb binge drinking, most of which provide education and alternative choices, such as Student Network for Abuse Prevention (SNAP) and Students Off Booze Enjoying Recovery (SOBER).
“We don’t send messages not to drink,” fourth-year Spanish and Chicano studies major and undergraduate student coordinator for SNAP Maira Rosas-Lee said. “We try to provide students with tips on how to recognize alcohol poisoning and bust alcohol myths.”
SNAP’s efforts include an interactive experience on the impact of drunkenness on the senses and a “be-WISE-er” campaign on alcohol safety.
The University also offers alcohol-free activities through Gophers After Dark and Comfort Zone in hopes of deterring students from drinking to socialize.
But even with these attempts, for some college students the temptation to binge is too great.
A little more than a month ago, Spanish and global studies third-year Isaac Fitzsimmons was a binge drinker.
“There’s always the temptation to drink,” Fitzsimmons said. “It’s really hard sometimes. I can’t go out on the weekend without being surrounded by alcohol.”
After realizing his binge-drinking problem, Fitzsimmons went to Boynton alcohol counseling. But he still wishes that drinking weren’t such a social focal point in college life.
“Someday, we are not going to be binge drinkers anymore,” Fitzsimmons said. “No matter where you are after college, you need to know how to communicate without binge drinking.”