Posted by THE FACTS
In Australia the legal drinking age is 18 and, officially, moderation is encouraged when drinking.
However, it is well documented that many Australians – both those over 18 and those underage – regularly partake in binge drinking, which means drinking quickly with the objective of getting drunk.
Statistics from the 2004-2005 National Health Survey suggest that amongst those over 18, 48% of men and 30% of women took part in binge-drinking in the past year, with 12% of men and 4% of women doing so at least once each week.
In the 18 to 24-year-old bracket, about 19% of men and 11% of women engaged in binge drinking every week.
The definition for binge drinking has been reduced in recent times, coming down from seven or more standard Australian drinks consumed in a session. It is now recommended by the National Health and Medical Research Council that men consume no more than four standard drinks in a session and women consume no more than two standard drinks in a session.
The Rudd Government has said it wants to tackle binge drinking, and has announced a $53 million campaign to that effect. Some have questioned whether the campaign is well focused or if it is properly funded.
THE VIEWS
Erik Jensen, writing in the Sydney Morning Herald, has said:
“The first step in combating binge drinking – unless you are Tony Abbott or John Cobb, and are stuck denying it is a majority problem – is to pull it out of the darkness. That is not by talking about it or setting guidelines or running television commercials, but by allowing an environment in which drinking is not a clandestine pleasure where one feels obliged to get too much from the experience.”
To stop the binge, take away rebellion
Noted social health commentator Dr Michael Carr-Gregg said in the Herald Sun:
“…the physiological effects of drinking on young, developing brains are… insidious.
Brain development continues until the age of 20. Damage from alcohol during this time can be long-term and irreversible.
Adolescents need only drink half as much as adults to suffer the same memory loss. Kids who binge once a week, or increase their drinking between the ages of 18 and 24, increase their chances of not attaining the goals of young adulthood like marriage, educational attainment, employment and financial independence.”
He went on to say:
“The Australian Medical Association has called for a ban on cable and free-to-air TV alcohol ads before 10pm but why not go a step further and ban all alcohol marketing?
Alcohol is a legal product, but why allow it to be marketed so aggressively when the Government is spending millions telling Aussie kids not to binge?”
BREAKING IT DOWN
A) Teenagers need to be made entirely aware of the consequences that will occur from binge drinking.
Kids generally understand the effects of alcohol in the abstract, but are not made to realise how much it can affect them mentally and physiologically.
B) Schools need to recognise that many of their students get drunk every weekend, and put steps in place to make this less desirable.
Most teens are loathe to listen to social advice from teachers. But a little ingenuity could create a system where role models and peers discourage binge drinking. Counseling for known heavy drinkers could also be effective.
C) Alcohol advertising needs to be even more greatly restricted.
As long as drinking remains cool, kids will drink. Ads make drinking look cool, and do not display the negative consequences.
WHAT’S YOUR OPINION?
Does Australia have a binge-drinking problem?
Alcoholic beverage producers are always coming up with new, flashy ways to advertise their products. Does this need to be stopped?
The link between alcohol and sport is well established. Do we need to ban alcohol from being consumed at sporting venues, particularly where there is an overlap of underage/overage sport?
Many argue that alcohol is entrenched in the Australian ‘way of life’. Does this need to change?