This weekend I was in a bar with friends when we heard a loud thump behind us. A clearly wasted girl had crashed onto the floor. Her eye makeup was down her face and her bra and thong were exposed. Giggling, her friends helped her up and dragged her out the door, where hopefully they stumbled home and not to another bar.
This scenario is frighteningly common. I've seen it countless times since I started college. In a slapstick way I suppose it's funny ' as long as the girl doesn't end up with severe alcohol poisoning or a one-night stand she can't remember and an STD she'll never forget.
Exact statistics vary, but one thing is certain: Binge drinking among college-aged women is on the rise and the ramifications are far more severe for women than they are for men. I'm not saying that binge drinking isn't dangerous for men. We all know what alcohol can do to a person. If you haven't personally worshipped the porcelain god after a night of heavy drinking, chances are a friend or roommate of yours has.
We've all been educated on the dangers of alcohol poisoning and on the legal ramifications of drinking or providing drinks for underage individuals. We know alcohol can make you fat, can destroy your liver and can lead to bad decisions. It's just that if you are an intoxicated woman, those bad decisions can follow you a lot longer.
There's an increased risk of rape. According to the Rape Abuse & Incest National Network, a woman is raped every two and a half minutes. One study found that 55 percent of men who had committed sexual assault were under the influence of alcohol and more than half of college-aged woman who have been sexually assaulted were drunk. Likewise, 68 percent of rapes occur between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m. ' prime drinking hours. Scary.
There is also an increased risk of sexually transmitted infections. Biologically speaking, women are already at a greater risk of contracting an STI than men are. The structure of their private areas leaves them more open to exposure. Men exchange more fluids during sex than women do and there is a higher level of the HIV virus in male fluids. Statistically speaking, being drunk doesn't help either.
The National Clearinghouse for Alcohol and Drug Information found that 60 percent of college-aged women were intoxicated when they contracted an STI. This isn't exactly shocking, considering that common sense predicts that alcohol lowers your inhibitions and makes you less likely to follow safe sex practices. Also, even if you don't get an STI, forgoing a condom can get you pregnant.
As a woman, even if you are careful, make sure that a friend walks you home and avoid one-night stands; the consequences of binge drinking are not limited to sexual assault or STIs.
Physically, women are more adversely affected by alcohol than men. We get drunker faster because of enzyme and water concentrations. In extreme situations (alcoholism), women are more likely to suffer permanent brain, heart and liver damage. Also, a woman is twice as likely to die from alcoholism than a man is.
So with all of risks that alcohol brings, why are more educated women choosing to drink excessively? I can't prove this, but I would venture a guess that many women aren't aware of just how much higher their risks are when they binge drink.
Beyond that, it seems that there is a greater social acceptance associated with drinking. It's something that a large number of college students have in common and the lowered inhibitions that alcohol brings can make even the shyest girl the life of the party.
Along the same vein, alcohol presents an escape. Past a certain number of drinks, alcohol tends to boost self-esteem. Many people feel invincible or at least well liked. For a woman, this can means she can say hi to the attractive guy, dance on a table and act in ways she would never dream of if she were sober.
I don't want my column to seem as a complete condemnation of alcohol. While I have seen a decent amount of alcohol abuse, most of the people I know are fairly responsible. If having a beer is your way of relaxing after a long week, who am I to judge? I just think it's scary and tragic when a young woman risks so much over a few too many cocktails.
Nikki Naab-Levy is a junior journalism and exercise physiology major. Send her an e-mail at nn104104@ohiou.edu.
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Nikki Naab-Levy
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