Study shows dangers of drinking at universities

Washington - A study showing 1,400 college students are killed each year in alcohol-related accidents should change the views of people who see drinking on campus as little more than a rite of passage, researchers and university officials said Tuesday.

The federally-appointed task force that issued the report plans to distribute the study to college presidents, along with findings about which anti-drinking strategies work and which don’t.

The study by the Task Force on College Drinking estimated that drinking by college students contributes to 500,000 injuries and 70,000 cases of sexual assault or date rape. Also, 400,000 students between 18 and 24 years old reported having had unprotected sex as a result of drinking.

General campaigns warning of the dangers of alcohol have not been effective, researchers said. They said it is better to teach students to resist peer pressure, show them how alcohol may interfere with academic goals and strictly enforce minimum age laws.

“All you have to do is look at a couple of cable television channels who cover spring break where endless groups of drunken students get up and say, ‘I’m having the greatest time here,’ and then you recognize on the basis of these statistics what the fallout of the great time is,” said the Rev. Edward Malloy, president of the University of Notre Dame and the task force co-chairman.

Students who died in other alcohol-related accidents, such as falls and drownings, were included. Those who died as a result of homicides or suicides were not.

Five MSU students are being charged in connection with the death of Eric Blair, an 18-year-old Bay City man, who drowned in the Red Cedar River in October. Blair was drinking with friends at MSU before he fell into the river.

In April 1998, former MSU student Ryan Getz’s body was found in the Red Cedar River. Getz was drinking with friends on campus when he disappeared.

But MSU University Physician Dr. Beth Alexander said the problem exists off campus, too. Social issues attached to alcohol abuse can prevent many from seeking help before it’s too late, she said.

“This is not a problem that’s unique to students,” she said. “It’s a pretty prevalent problem in the general population in this country.

“If you have a heart attack you can tell your best friend pretty easily. If you have a problem with alcohol you don’t necessarily share it with everyone.”

A 2000 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services survey found 62 percent of full-time college students had a drink in the previous month, compared to 50.8 percent of their peers who were not full-time students.

Chief researcher Ralph Hingson of the Boston University School of Public Health said he believes the estimates are more likely to be too conservative than overstated.

“I think actually getting the numbers out will help the public understand that this is a very large problem, perhaps a larger problem than people might have otherwise thought,” he said.

Economics junior Andrew Walsh, who turned 21 on Tuesday, said he isn’t surprised by the data. Because of MSU’s nearly 45,000 student population, he expected more deaths to occur in the area.

“Most kids are around the age of 21 where they are going to be partying,” he said. “When you go to a party or at the bar, you just see a bunch of drunk people everywhere. If you go to any campus it will be like that.”