College alcohol abuse is a growing problem. The number of alcohol-related deaths among college students was 1,800 in 2005, up from 1,400 in 1998, according to a report by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. The report also found that college students are driving drunk and binge drinking.
Mark Wolfson, a professor of social sciences and health policy at Wake Forest University School of Medicine, said that although the number of students abstaining from alcohol has grown, binge drinking among college students is increasing.
“It’s clear a lot of them are now drinking to get trashed,” Wolfson said. “I think a lot of people in the field feel there’s been a cultural change where now, students drink to get loaded. It really is a serious public health program.”