Pint of beer

Alcohol

The consumption of alcohol with young people such as ourselves has received high amounts of press coverage in the United Kingdom over recent weeks. Many experts have been telling us to stop ‘binge’ drinking before we do ourselves permanent damage.

Alcohol as I am sure you are well aware is fun. It is the ‘nations favourite drug’ and has not received this title for nothing. Alcohol can allow us to relax, be more sociable and in general have a good night. So what if we can’t remember anything the next day, we’re only young once. Although alcohol can provide us with enjoyable times, it also has many consequences if you become addicted or just drink excessively. Below are some of the adverse affects that alcohol can have:

Make you ill
Give you a hangover
Cost you a lot of money
Cloud your judgement
Encourage you to do things that are stupid or dangerous.
Act as a depressive
Make you fat
Lead to serious health problems and, in extreme cases, even death

Alcohol as everyone is aware forces us to loose our inhibitions. A recent survey of 1,000 women aged 16-34 showed that 50% got so drunk they could not remember how they got home and a third of them said that alcohol had been the cause of them having unprotected sex. This could have lead to STIs and I believe demonstrates the side of alcohol that is not as fun or carefree as we may all have first thought.

All these points however serious demonstrate the effects of ‘binge’ drinking or regular alcoholic consumption. But what happens if you are someone who relies on drink and is in danger of being an alcoholic. If this is the case, you should ask yourself:

Have you ever felt you should cut down on your drinking?
Have people annoyed you by criticising your drinking?
Have you ever felt guilty about your drinking?
Have you ever had a drink first thing in the morning to steady your nerves or to get rid of a hangover?

Only you know if you are addicted to alcohol. However, if you answered yes to two or more of the above questions you should consider how much alcohol you are consuming and feel dependent on. Think about talking to friends and family, think about seeking expert help, think about facing your problem!

Party

Try explaining to your friends why you want to cut down. If they are mates, they will help you without questioning. For many of us alcohol is not a problem and something we drink to enhance our fun when out with friends. I am not suggesting you don’t drink as that would be ludicrous…we all enjoy the affects of alcohol. I am however suggesting that you are aware of the problems alcohol has the potential to cause. Think about staying safe when consuming alcohol but do enjoy it in moderation. You only have one life, live it!

If you have any questions about alcohol please do not hesitate to e-mail me and I will try and help. Alternatively you can visit www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/onelife for lots of information about life and health issues such as alcohol.