"Binge drinking", "heavy drinking", "extreme drinking", and "benders" all refer to different forms of excessive alcohol consumption. Exact definitions are without consensus across different countries and cultures. Notably, heavy drinkers define "binge drinking" more liberally than do light drinkers. In the US, the rapid downing of 5 or more drinks by a man and 4 by a woman constitutes a "binge". In some countries, such as Russia, binge drinking is characterized as being continually drunk over a number of days. Americans know this as a "bender". Another term, "extreme drinking" now commonly refers to rapid consumption of 9 or 10 drinks respectively by a woman and a man.

Clearly, binge drinking, by any definition is dangerous and potentially deadly. It’s estimated that while only 7% of the US population binge drink, this small group consumes over 45% of the alcohol. In minors the estimate is that binge drinkers consume over 90% of the alcohol sold to minors.

Alcohol related deaths are almost as prevalent as drug related deaths. In 2003, 20,600 people died from alcohol induced causes (excluding homicides) versus 28,700 from all manner of drug induced causes (including poisoning from prescribed and non-prescribed drugs). Binge drinking is a significant factor in a great many alcohol related deaths.

Women Keeping Up with the Men

Binge drinking is not just an on campus problem. A recently released study by the Joseph Roundtree Foundation of UK drinking patterns found that the proportion of women who binge-drink has almost doubled between 1998 and 2006. In the U.S. the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University found that girls as young as ninth-graders were just as likely as boys to report drinking alcohol. According to research published in the July 2009 issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry binge drinking in U.S. woman aged 21 to 23 rose between 1979 and 2006 by more than 40%.

More Information:
• Dramatic Increase in Drinking Among Women College Students
• Alcohol Binges Early in Pregnancy Increase Risk of Infant Oral Cleftsread

Statistics indicate that about 1,400-1,700 students die of alcohol-related causes each year and as many as 500,000 will suffer alcohol related injuries.

• According to a report from the Harvard School of Public Health, 51 percent of male college students and 40 percent of female college students have routinely engaged in binge drinking in the previous two weeks. Students who binge may experience more of the secondhand effects of excessive blood alcohol content (BAC) such as disruption of sleep or study; property damage; and verbal, physical, or sexual violence than others.
• 48% of college drinkers report that "drinking to get drunk" is an important reason for drinking. Almost 1 in 4 drink alcohol 10 or more times a month and 29% report being intoxicated 3 or more times per month. (2005 SAMHSA National Survey on Drug Use and Health).
• The statistics highlight the need for students to take personal ownership for guarding themselves from the dangers of alcohol abuse, especially alcohol abuse by others.

More Information:
• College-Age Alcohol Deaths Up
• College Drinking, Changing the Culture
• Heavy Drinking Colleges Showing No Improvements
• Binge Drinking Tied to Conditions in the College Environment

• According to a report by the Center for Disease Control, 43% of all high school students had drank alcohol in the past 30 days and 25.5% of high school students have had more than 5 drinks on more than one occasion in the past 30 days.
• When youth drink they tend to drink intensively. A survey entitled "Monitoring the Future" found that adolescents frequently consume four to five drinks at one time. The data shows that 11 percent of 8th graders, 22 percent of 10th graders, and 29 percent of 12th graders had engaged in binge drinking within the past two weeks.

More Information:
• Teen Binge Drinkers Risk Alcoholism and Social Exclusion as Adults
• Preventing Adolescent Binge Drinking

There are many other possible consequences of alcohol abuse which can be life altering for both the drinker and their victims. Accurate BAC testing and regular monitoring of susceptible individuals can play a positive role in preventing or reducing the following alcohol abuse consequences:

• DUI, with the frequently associated serious consequences of arrest, injury, lifelong disability, and death
• Accidents such as falls, crashes, drowning, poisonings, shootings.
• Expulsion from school, class absenteeism, reduced grades. Impaired brain development.
• Violence such as assaults and domestic violence.
• Property damage.
• Unprotected sex, unintended pregnancy, sexually transmitted diseases and sexual dysfunction.
• Health issues such as liver disease, high blood pressure, stroke, and other cardiovascular diseases. Neurological damage.
• Weakened athletic performance.
• Greater chance of alcoholism as an adult.