East Carolina University
The Department of Health Education and Promotion
Alcohol Use Education and Prevention

General Alcohol Information

Alcohol use is very common in our society, especially among college students. Excessive alcohol use in the form of heavy drinking (consuming more than 2 drinks per day for men and 1 drink per day for women) or binge drinking (consuming 5 or more drinks during a single occasion for men and 4 or more drinks during a single occasion for women) can lead to increased risk of chronic health problems like cirrhosis of the liver; pancreatitis (inflammation of the pancreas); cancers of the mouth, liver, throat, larynx, and esophagus; high blood pressure; and psychological disorders. Other health problems include unintentional injuries (motor-vehicle crashes, falls, drowning, burns, and firearm injuries). Violence in the form of physical or sexual assault, child abuse, homicide, and suicide is also common with excessive alcohol use.1
Read the sobering statistics below to understand the consequences of excessive drinking among college students in the U.S.
  • Death: 1,800 college students ages 18-24 die each year from alcohol-related unintentional injuries, including motor vehicle crashes. 2
  • Injury: About 600,000 students ages 18-24 are unintentionally injured under the influence of alcohol. 2
  • Assault: About 646,000 students ages 18-24 are assaulted by another student who has been drinking. 2
  • Sexual Abuse: 97,000 college students experienced a sexual assault or date rape perpetrated by another student who had been drinking. 2
  • Academic Problems: About 22% of college students indicated they had performed poorly on a test/ other project due to substance use. 3
  • Health Problems/Suicide Attempts: 10.9% of college students thought they might have a substance abuse problem, 4.5% had seriously considered suicide. 3
  • Drunk Driving: 3.4 million students ages 18-24 report driving under the influence of alcohol. 2 
  • Police Involvement: 13.9% of college students stated they had trouble with police or authorities due to substance use. 3

Alcohol affects each individual organ in the body. It is considered a central nervous system depressant that is readily absorbed from the stomach and small intestine into the blood stream.  Alcohol molecules are broken down or metabolized in the liver by enzymes. It is important to remember that the liver can only metabolize a small amount of alcohol at one time, thus leaving the excess alcohol to circulate throughout the body. The effects of alcohol on the body are directly related to the amount consumed, but individual reactions to alcohol vary due to age, gender, race/ethnicity, physical condition (weight, fitness level, etc), amount of food consumed before drinking, how quickly alcohol was consumed, use of drugs or prescription medications, and a family history of alcohol problems.1

References

  1. Centers for Disease Control (CDC). Alcohol and Public Health. Atlanta, GA: CDC. Available at http://www.cdc.gov/alcohol/. Accessed August 24, 2010.
  2. Hingson,RW; Wenxing,Z; Weitzman, E. (2009). Magnitude of alcohol-related mortality and morbidity among U.S. college students ages 18-24, 1998-2005. Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, Supplement 16:12-20.
  3. Southern Illinois University Carbondale: Core Institute. 2006 Core Alcohol and Drug Survey Data, National Sample data. Retrieved from: http://www.core.siuc.edu/. Accessed on August 25, 2010.