Binge drinking can be described as drinking heavily over a short period of time or drinking continuously over a number of days or weeks.
Binge drinking results in immediate and severe intoxication, and as well as health risks, this can lead people to take risks and put themselves in dangerous situations. Common effects of binge-drinking episodes are hangovers, headaches, loss of memory, nausea, shakiness and vomiting.
Is binge drinking harmful?
Binge drinking can be harmful for a number of reasons:
- It can be immediately and directly harmful to your health due to alcohol toxicity.
- It can expose you and others to risk of injury.
- The consequences of these can have long-lasting effects on both your health and well-being.
Long term effects
If someone drinks heavily over a long period of time, they can become physically and psychologically dependent upon alcohol. Their body gets used to functioning with alcohol present and drinking can become more important than other activities in their life. Over time, alcohol can damage parts of the body, including the brain and liver. There are also the risks of developing emotional problems, such as depression, and problems at school, work and with relationships.
Other consequences of binge drinking include unsafe sex practices and unwanted pregnancy, feeling shame or embarrassment about your behaviour, feeling vulnerable or out of control while intoxicated, car accidents, assaults and arguments, losing valuable personal items, financial losses through reckless spending on alcohol or having to take time off work or uni to recover from a binge.
Treatment
There are a number of alcohol treatment options available in Australia. While abstinence may be a suitable treatment aim for some people, many programs recognise that for others this may not be possible or realistic. Most programs adopt strategies that have an overall aim of reducing the harms and risks related to the person's alcohol use.
Some treatment options include counselling, withdrawal (detoxification) and medication (pharmacotherapy). Residential and "out-patient" programs are available. Treatment is more effective if tailored to suit a person's circumstances, and usually involves a combination of methods.
Source of information: DrugInfo Clearinghouse - Australian Drug Foundation
Worried About Someone Else?
If you think your friend might have had too much to drink there are a number of things you can do to help, including:
- Staying with your friend and making sure they are ok.
- Quietly letting your friend know that they are probably drunk and suggesting to them it would be a good idea to stop drinking alcohol or to slow down, drink some water and eat something.
- Making sure your friend gets home OK - for example, by either hailing them a taxi for them, taking them home by car, public transport or by walking, or taking them back to your place.
- Letting someone at their house know they're really drunk and need to be monintored.
If your friend loses consciousness, it is important to get help straight away and call an ambulance.
Reference - Reach Out! website
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