Accidents and death –Alcohol is a factor in about one in three of all accidental deaths whether you walk off the top of a ten story car park or the driver of the car that your hit by has had ‘one too many’. Between midnight and early morning 3 out 4 accident and emergency department admission are because of using alcohol.

Unsafe sex – After drinking alcohol one is seven surveyed had unsafe sex (not using a condom); one in five had sex which they later wished they hadn’t had ; one in ten were unable to remember whether they had sex or not! Nearly half agreed that they were more likely to have sex with someone that they didn’t really fancy (both ‘urgh’ and ‘risky’!).

Brain damage – Your brain is particularly sensitive to the effects of alcohol when you are young. It is thought that drinking to excess interferes with a critical stage in development of the brain - and that the problem may get worse with age. Alcohol and binge drinking in particular damages parts of the brain that underpin everyday memory – your short term memory! Do you really want to forget what you did yesterday, or what you needed to buy from the shops?

Liver Failure – Natasha Farnham was the youngest patient in the UK to suffer from liver failure caused by alcohol abuse. She was just 14 when diagnosed. As a result of her binge drinking Natasha has no short-term memory and doctors have warned her if she drinks again she will die.

Increased blood pressure and heart rate – Binge drinking on a regular basis can cause heart problems, especially later in life.

The effect on your appearance – Your skin is likely to appear dehydrated, you are likely to break out in spots, your hair will lose its shine and appear limp, and due to the amount of sugar and calories in one drink you are also likely to gain weight. You may even end up with a lovely round beer belly…NICE!!

Binge behaviour – Binge boozing on a regular basis can shape your future drinking habits, often leading to a harmful relationship with alcohol.

Violence and Criminal Records – Alcohol is responsible for just about half of all crimes involving losing your temper and getting into fights. The number of binge-drinking females arrested for being drunk and disorderly has leapt ten-fold in parts of Britain over the past five years.

Teenage girls are responsible for more than 40 violent attacks every day. Girls were also responsible for 5,748 incidents of criminal damage and almost 1,000 drugs offences, according to the Youth Justice Board.

Not really something to shout about on your C.V!!

Government Initiatives

Shock Tactics – The Government have reverted to shock tactics in an attempt to discourage young teenagers from binge drinking. They have launched a series of anti-binge drinking adverts showing young people deliberately injuring themselves and smearing vomit in their hair.

The £4 million Home Office campaign is designed to show the consequences of drinking too much, and asks: “You wouldn’t start a night like this, so why end it that way?”

Other government suggestions include:

• A ban on happy hours and cut-price promotions.
• Pubs and clubs ordered to serve smaller measure of wines and spirits as standard.
• Cigarette-style health warnings on cans and bottles, extending a voluntary scheme where containers show the units of alcohol.
• Loss-leading alcohol sales by supermarkets may also be targeted.

Think Point!

• Do you think the government initiatives work?
• If yes, why?
• If not, what do you suggest they do?