Henry Wechsler's new book

Henry Wechsler, lecturer on social psychology in the Department of Health and Social Behavior and director of the Harvard School of Public Health College Alcohol Studies Program, has researched the drinking habits of college kids for more than 10 years. He has released four studies, each warning about the menace of binge drinking on college campuses. Now, Wechsler has written a book, Dying to Drink: Confronting Binge Drinking on College Campuses (Rodale/August 2002), with science writer Bernice Wuethrich.

Wechsler defines binge drinking as having five or more drinks in a row for men and four or more drinks in a row for women at least once in the past two weeks. His research has revealed that two out of five college students binge drink at least once per week; more students binge drink than smoke cigarettes or take illicit drugs; and an estimated 1,400 college students die each year from binge drinking, the majority from drunk driving accidents.

While acknowledging that college students are responsible for their own decisions, Wechsler points to several factors that contribute to the public health problem of college students’ binge drinking. A ring of bars and liquor stores surround most colleges, said Wechsler. At one college, 185 alcohol outlets exist in a two-mile radius of the campus. Cheap beer, ladies’ nights, bar parties, and pub crawls directed at students make binge drinking easy and affordable. A binge may end up being cheaper than a movie. Wechsler’s research has shown that access to an unlimited amount of alcohol increases the number of drinks consumed per sitting.

"Big Alcohol" strategizes how to reach college students in particular because they drink more than their non-college peers, said Wechsler. Drinkers tend to stick with the brands they try first, so competition for new drinkers is strong.

Even staying on campus may expose students to alcohol marketing. Bars may advertise parties and special sales prices on college campuses, reaching a largely underage audience. On some campuses, traditional parties, such as "Homecoming" events, provide alcohol on campus.

Wechsler sees an unhealthy relationship between colleges and the alcohol industry.

"Some colleges, like alcoholics, have been dependent upon alcohol far too long," said Wechsler.

Henry Wechsler

"Those colleges have waived their educational efforts on drinking by accepting the industry’s educational efforts," said Wechsler.

Alcohol does not affect only the drinkers on campus. Non-drinkers may find their sleep or studies interrupted by noisy, partying peers. Alcohol has been linked to physical assaults and to unwanted sexual advances on campuses.

In Dying to Drink, Wechsler offers a 12-point action plan for colleges, parents, and communities. He hopes that parents, foremost, and college administrators, as well as students, read his book.

For more information about the Harvard School of Public Health College Alcohol Studies Program, supported by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, visit http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/cas/.

• Two out of five college students binge drink at least once per week.

• More students binge drink than smoke cigarettes or take illicit drugs.

• Alcohol has been linked to one-half of all campus crime.

• An estimated 1,400 college students a year die from binge drinking, the majority from drunk driving accidents.

• More than one million students annually suffer injuries caused by their own or someone else’s binge drinking.

• 75 percent of all fraternity and sorority members are binge drinkers.

• Nearly 80 percent of college athletes drink.

• A ring of bars and liquor stores surround most colleges. At one college, 185 alcohol outlets exist in a two-mile radius of the campus.

• The alcohol industry makes huge profits from sales to college students, who spend more annually on alcohol than on soft drinks, tea, milk, juice, coffee and schoolbooks combined.

• 159,000 freshman drop out of college every year for alcohol or drug-related reasons.

• One college study showed that 74 percent of sexual assault perpetrators on campus and 55 percent of the sexual assault victims had been drinking.