Binge Drinking on the Rise with Women

Binge drinking among college students is nothing new. For decades, the act of routinely drinking way too much has been glamorized among both college and high school students. Binge drinking is defined as having five or more drinks in one sitting. However, this amount is at the lower end of the actual number of drinks that college students are consuming when they go out partying. Some students admit to regularly drinking twenty or more alcoholic beverages in a night, putting them at risk for alcohol poisoning and injury, among a host of other problems that are associated with binge drinking.

Recent studies have shown that not only is this trend of heavy drinking not likely to taper off any time soon, women have begun to drink as excessively as their male counterparts. No longer is extreme alcohol abuse something only frat boys participate in, women are also participating in excessive alcohol consumption. This is dangerous for a number of different reasons. Not only do women typically weigh less and not metabolize alcohol as fast as men, they are putting themselves at risk to increased chances of heart disease, breast cancer, sexually-transmitted diseases, sexual assault and unplanned pregnancies by trying to keep up with the boys.

According to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, roughly 1,500 student deaths, 500,000 injuries and 70,000 cases of sexual assault occur every year at the college level because of excessive alcohol consumption. It is estimated that nearly 50 percent of college students binge drink, participating in pregaming before going out to parties, drinking games, and the need to fit in with the rest of the crowd by drinking way too much. About 1 in 5 girls in high school and college binge drink, and it leads to nearly 23,000 deaths in women age 18 to 34 every year.

In addition to being a particularly dangerous activity to engage in at any age, binge drinking is also often the first step towards developing alcoholism for both men and women. What most young people fail to realize is that drinking excessively increases their tolerance and can lead to developing dependence on alcohol later on down the road. When men and women are dependent on alcohol, they find it hard to function in life without regular drinking. Having a few drinks every now and then is one thing, but drinking everyday and routinely consuming enough to put yourself in the hospital can lead to a long list of mental and physical complications.

Alcoholism is a deadly disease, and recovery is not an easy road. Many alcoholics never get professional treatment for their condition, and many even end up relapsing numerous times after attending rehab. Relapse is not the end, and people that struggle with alcohol addiction should not give up even if they do return to drinking after an extended period of sobriety. But the best prevention against alcoholism and other drug addictions is through educating the youths of America about the dangers of binge drinking, alcohol poisoning and alcohol addiction.

Amy Winehouse Death Confirmed to Be Alcohol-Related

A coroner's report in London on Tuesday, January 8, 2013 confirmed that the death of Amy Winehouse was from alcohol poisoning. After the Grammy award-winning singer and London resident passed away at the age of 27 on July 23, 2011, the original coroner inquest was deemed inconsequential due to lack of qualifications. The coroner resigned in November of 2011 when her credibility was questioned after authorities learned that she had not been a registered lawyer in Great Britain for five years, a necessary requirement.

Winehouse was found dead in her home in London with empty bottles of vodka. The singer had struggled with drug abuse and alcohol abuse for years and had recently quit taking drugs and made attempts to stop drinking alcohol. In a widely public battle with drug addiction and alcohol addiction, Winehouse was able to get clean from her use of heroin, crack and marijuana, but struggled with maintaining sobriety from alcohol. According to sources that knew the singer, she had recently started drinking again after remaining sober for roughly two weeks.

Toxicology reports after Winehouse's death indicated that she had a blood alcohol content of 0.4, more than five times the legal driving limit of 0.08. At this high level of intoxication, medical professionals suggested that she most likely had a respiratory arrest. Consuming that much alcohol can have serious effect on the central nervous system, and the person will sometimes not wake up after falling asleep.

Winehouse rose to fame with the release of her 2006 album "Back to Black", which won a total of five Grammys. She had a distinct style and strong voice. Winehouse often worked with producer Mark Ronson in a genre of music classified as neo-soul. In addition to her drug and alcohol abuse problems, the singer also suffered from various health problems including seizures, emphysema and bulimia. There were no suspicions of foul play in her death, and it was determined that the consumption of alcohol was voluntary.

Stories like Winehouse's are not all that uncommon in the music industry. Drug abuse and alcohol abuse occur quite frequently among musicians, and drug overdoses and alcohol toxicity have been known to cause numerous deaths among members of the music scene. This can attributed to a variety of different reasons, such as the environment of playing in bars and venues that serve alcohol, the culture of drug use among people in the music industry, and the stress of playing onstage in front of large crowds. There have been many great musicians over the years that passed away too early in life due to complications resulting from drug and alcohol addictions.

Winehouse was known by those close to her as not only an extremely talented singer, but also an intelligent and determined individual. Unfortunately, she did not have a successful attempt at recovery and passed away early in what may have been a long and prosperous career and life. Her death demonstrates the power that drugs and alcohol can have over lives, and the importance in seeking treatment to get clean and stay sober.