A Core survey showed that 84 percent of college students said that they drank alcohol within a year of taking that survey.
This number is much higher than the alcohol consumption in the U.S. in general. A Gallup poll shows two-thirds of Americans said they occasionally drink alcohol.
According to the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, “about half of college student drinkers engage in heavy episodic consumption” or binge drinking.
Binge drinking is when a man drinks five drinks in a row within a two-hour period. It’s four drinks for a woman.
Additionally, a study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that college kids drink around 9.3 drinks per binge session, while most people only drink the minimum four or five drinks per session.
Students who are in Greek organizations or are athletes are much more likely to drink than normal students. They are also more likely to drink to get drunk, according to the Core survey.
A Greek at ULM disagrees with that report.
“I don’t think 93 percent drink; I think most of our members don’t drink. If they do drink it’s actually safer because you do have someone to depend on compared to a student who is drinking by themselves at a party,” said Leondra Ford, a senior nursing major who is a member of Delta Sigma Theta sorority.
The Core’s poll reports that 88 percent of student athletes drink and that athletes are the heaviest drinkers among the student population.
“You have to be smart when you’re drinking because, for one, if you make a fool out of yourself in public, that reflects how people view you, your team and the university,” said sophomore health studies pre-professional Haylie Wilson, a pitcher for the softball team.
Wilson warned of other dangers concerning drinking and being a student athlete.
“If you drink and then go workout, you’re going to smell really gross,” Wilson said.
Russell Hollis, Alcohol and Other Drugs Programs Coordinator for ULM, said the statistics don’t always represent everyone.
“Not everybody who drinks has problems, only a small percent of people develop into anything past social drinking,” Hollis said. “If there are any problems with drinking, it usually starts between 18 and 21.”
