Are Your Habits Considered Binge Drinking?

Binge drinking is a serious public health issue in the U.S. It is defined as a pattern of drinking that brings a person’s blood alcohol concentration (BAC) to .08 or more.

Who Binge Drinks and How Often? It’s Not Just College Students!

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), one in six adults binge drinks about four times a month, consuming about eight drinks per binge. The age group that binge drinks the most is between 25 and 34-years-old. A close second are people between 18 and 24-years-old.

Binge drinking is more prevalent among males, but in the last two decades, binge drinking among females has been on an alarming rise.

Binge drinking, among other things, is a consequence on your finances and your health. Unintentional injures can happen because of binge drinking as well, such as car crashes and alcohol poisoning.

How to Curb Binge Drinking

The Community Preventive Services Task Force recommends evidence-based tactics to prevent binge drinking. Some of them are:

• Increasing alcohol taxes
• Limiting the number of retail alcohol outlets,
• And dram shop liability, which holds alcohol retailers responsible for the harm caused by illegal alcohol sales to minors or customers who are already intoxicated.

Additional tactics include screening and counseling for alcohol misuse and consistently enforcing laws against underage drinking and alcohol-impaired driving.

Binge Drinking Can Lead to Dangerous Decisions

Drunk driving is still a prevalent issue in the U.S. Anyone could make this decision, whether someone is a casual drinker, or they suffer from alcoholism. Drunk driving deaths rose for the second year in a row, and the only physical tool to prevent this dangerous decision is the Ignition Interlock.

An Optional Ignition Interlock Device

Ignition Interlocks are a requirement for DUI offenders, but they can also be a safety option while driving. Most vendors provide a low-rate, voluntary program with easy tests for those who want to ensure safe driving of their vehicle BEFORE something negative happens. Smart Start can assist you if you want to keep yourself and others on the road safe with the most convenient, economical voluntary program in the U.S.

Call our Customer Care Center today at (800) 831-3299 or fill out our short online form.