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Spring Break Binge Drinking
March 17, 2009 |
It’s springtime in Southwest Florida and that means spring break. With it, comes
crowded beaches and crowded bars and local teens could find themselves in the mix.
Dr. Tim Dougherty, Medical Director for Cape Coral Hospital’s emergency room warns,
“when you start drinking, the first few drinks, there’s an excitation phase that
you feel good.”
The National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism predicts that this year,
90% of underage drinkers will binge. Bing drinking typically happens when men consume
5 or more drinks, women: 4 or more drinks in about two hours. “For some people,
they do it to escape. For others, they do it for experimentation. For other people,
they do it for peer pressure because they are in an environment with a group of
people that everyone else is drinking,”says Dr. Dougherty.
Adding to the social pressures, hormones.
In fact, being a teen can actually complicate
the binge drinking problem. “They will do things they normally wouldn’t do. You
combine that with being a teenager who feels they are invincible, that’s a bad combination,”
warns Dr. Dougherty.
Doctors encourage parents to talk to their teens about the dangers of drinking.
In come cases, bringing up the topic could encourage teens to put down the drink.
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