Journal 5

Recently, binge drinking has become a serious problem on many college campus. Henry Wechsler, who directs the College Alcohol Studies program at Harvard’s School of Public Health, proposed several methods to eradicate the phenomenon of binge drinking on college campus. According to a Harvard study, the author mention, “Among more than 14,500 students … 43 per cent reported they had binged at least once in the preceding two weeks” (Wechsler 20). That means binge drink problem needs solving urgently.

In “Getting Serious about eradicating Binge Drink,” the author Henry Wechsler came up with an idea that public seldom mentions:

A third impetus for binge drinking on campus - one rarely mentioned publicly - involves alumni at tailgate parties during homecoming activities and sporting events. Any alcohol-control measures adopted for students must also apply to visiting alumni.

This impetus is often ignored by the public; however, it could be the major part of causes of college’s binge drinking. When alumni come back to colleges, they are not adopted to the alcohol-control policies which restricts students. Actually, students can easily defend the rules because of the alumni. Making students and alumni adopt the same alcohol-control policies may decrease alumni’s contribution, but it can protect students from binge drinking.

            The most significant thing to eradicate binge drinking is to make students realize the disadvantages that binge drinking causes. School should use various ways to let students learn the fact of binge drinking such like binge drinking is associated with many health problems, including alcohol poisoning, high blood pressure and poor control of diabetes. If that binge drinking is harmful become a wide recognition, in some day, there will be no binge drink in college campuses.  

            The author of the article, Wechsler, use the example of smoking and draw the conclusion that “Binge drinking could become equally unacceptable on college campuses” (24).