by HM1 Alvin Grant , USN

Binge drinking is defined as "the consumption of five or more drinks in a row on at least one occasion." In national surveys, about one-third of high school seniors and 42 percent of college students reported at least one occasion of binge drinking within the past two weeks.

While national surveys have documented a significant decline in the use of other drugs by high school seniors and college-age youths, there have been only modest declines in the numbers reporting binge drinking among our junior enlisted personnel. It appears these statistics will remain the same for 1998. According to studies, teenagers and young adults 20 to 25 years old drink alcohol at the same rates they did in 1993.

Binge drinking increases the risk for all types of alcohol-related injuries, especially for young people, who often combine alcohol with other high-risk activities, such as impaired driving. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the four leading injury related causes of death among youths under the age of 20 are motor vehicle crashes, homicides, suicides and drowning. Alcohol is involved in nearly 100 percent of these deaths. Sexual encounters with their inherent risks of pregnancy, sexually transmitted diseases and HIV exposure, as well as date rape and other violence, can and do occur more frequently while students are consuming large amounts of alcohol by binge drinking.

Binge drinking or the partying lifestyle of young people, may be related to an environment that appears to support heavy drinking. Some junior servicemembers think that's what they are "suppose to do." Our junior enlisted report that alcohol is more easily available to them today than it was five years ago and there is a high correlation between availability and use. In addition, alcohol remains inexpensive in comparison with other beverages, especially beer when purchased in kegs, often the center of a party.

As new enlisted personnel enter the culture of the military and the barracks environment, they are confronted with many challenges and opportunities:

• The opportunity to be independent of parental control
• The need to conform to military standards
• The insecurity of a new social setting and tradition

Forty-one percent of our junior enlisted engage in binge drinking, as compared to 34 percent of their college counterparts. Another factor that may add to the barracks setting as a high-risk environment for binge drinking is that our young adults are targets of heavy marketing of alcohol.

Prevention strategies in response to binge drinking by our junior enlisted include actions to reduce alcohol availability. Some actions already in effect include increases in price, and responsible beverage service practices at local bars and clubs. One important thing for everyone to remember is "responsible use" of alcohol.

Some local communities in the Washington metropolitan area require keg tagging. This requires kegs be labeled with a serial number identifying the purchaser in case the keg is discovered at an underage drinking party. If the renter of the keg is caught providing alcohol to a minor, the renter and the keg owner are usually fined or imprisoned according to the severity and or age of the accused. Other strategies include restrictions on marketing and promotion practices that glamorize heavy drinking (The Navy's Right Spirit Campaign).