For some college students, weekends are made for binge drinking. Unfortunately, they do not realize that binge-drinking can be harmful, and even deadly. Students have growing concerns for friends and class mates that have drinking problems.

On March 11, student Christopher Berry, anthropology major at the New Mexico State University in Las Cruces, fell ill from alcohol poisoning and died after celebrating his twenty-second birthday. In less than a four-month period, it was the second death of a NMSU student, where binge-drinking was the cause.

“Whether we like it or not, drinking is a part of college life,” said Truman Tsosie, a 19- year-old student at the University of New Mexico branch campus in Gallup. “What we need is to get the word out about the hazards of binge-drinking.”

Tsosie, after finding out about the deaths of two NMSU students, was concerned about friends that indulge in drinking. He said he does not drink, yet faces pressure from friends to drink, which he finds bothersome and even disturbing.

“I worry especially that people sometimes think they are invincible, especially some friends I have. They think that nothing would happen to them.”

What the Statistics Show

Nationwide, more than 1,700 college students between 18 and 24 died in 2001 as a result of alcohol-related injuries, most from automobile accidents, according to a report three weeks ago from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.

UNM’s Campus Office of substance abuse, in a survey in 2002, found 38.9 percent of student ages 18-21 reported having indulged in binge-drinking in the 30 days prior to the national study of alcohol and substance abuse for college campuses. The national average is 42 percent.

“Most incoming freshmen often arrive thinking they can handle more alcohol than what they actually can consume,” said Krystal Tso, a 19-year-old student attending Dine College on the Navajo reservation in Tsaile, Ariz.

“I’ve seen students drink more than usual just to impress others. Before you know it, they would be drunk and even pass out. Sometimes, I would have to take care of friends, worried that they might choke on their own vomit are something.”

In a 2003 National College Alcohol, Drug and Violence Survey of students at the Institute of American Indian Arts, 80.6 percent have consumed alcohol for this particular year at one time or another; 55.6 percent had hangovers; 22.9 percent had been hurt and injured.

“Drinking is a problem even though it’s in moderation,” said Rueben Chinana, a first-year student at IAIA. “When I first came here students asked if I wanted to drink, but now people know that I don’t drink so they don’t ask anymore.”

Peer Pressure is Strong

Chinana said that peer pressure is a problem for first-time students, and that sometimes, people fall into the trap of drinking just to be accepted. “I’ve been there before. I did use to participate. I’ve indulged before and gotten sick.”

“Passing out is a strong warning sign that someone who has been drinking needs immediate attention,” said Dr. William Einig, medical director of the Memorial Medical Center emergency room, who was recently quoted in a March 20 Albuquerque Journal article.

“The unfortunate thing is that people who are drinking are the last ones who can judge how intoxicated they are,” Einig said. “Problems of slurred speech, poor coordination, difficulty walking, vomiting—these are all signs someone has had too much and that’s when friends should stop them.”