A new report, “Wasting the Best and Brightest,” by the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse challenges the notion that college drinking is an inevitable “rite of passage” and calls on educators, alumni and parents to take a bolder stand against underage drinking and substance abuse.

Jill Anne Yeagley, manager of the UNM Campus Office of Substance Abuse Prevention sees similar issues and trends among UNM students, noting that the behaviors reflect a culture that socializes youths to medicate every discomfort and to regard substance abuse as harmless and deserved.

National researchers warn that college students’ substance use has become more extreme and dangerous over the past decade. Frequent binge drinking increased 16 percent* and abuse of controlled prescription drugs skyrocketed between 93 and 343 percent, depending on the drug. In turn, this increased intensity led to a significant escalation in negative consequences. From 1993 to 2001, the proportion of students injured as a result of their own drinking rose by 38 percent and student deaths from unintentional alcohol‐related injuries rose by six percent to 1,717 between 1998 and 2001. 

The research also confirmed strong correlations between substance abuse and lower grade point averages, aggressive behavior, vandalism, and risky sexual activity.

“To ensure students succeed and become ‘players’ in the global economy, we must take the high out of higher education,” Yeagley says. “While the steady efforts of COSAP and collaborating departments have produced incremental improvements, significant cultural change requires the involvement of college administrators, regents, parents, student groups, alumni, and the business community. I am optimistic that university community members can build a healthier culture under the leadership of incoming President Schmidly.”

*Binge drinking is defined as five or more drinks for males, four or more for females (sequentially). Frequent represents three or more times in the past two weeks.

You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.