Drug and Alcohol Abuse on Campus
College-age drinking
60: percentage of students surveyed reported drinking alcohol in the past month
40%: reported binge drinking in past month
13 %: reported heavy drinking in last month
Binge Drinking : 5 or more drinks in a row for men; 4 or more for women.
Heavy Drinking: 5 or more drinks on the same occasion on each of 5 or more days in the past 30 days.
Fraternity/Sorority drinking: 26 % of Greeks more likely to binge drink
Consequences of college-age drinking
Every year:
1,825 die from alcohol-related unintentional injuries, including motor vehicle crashes.
599,000 are unintentionally injured under the influence of alcohol.
696,000 are assaulted by another student who has been drinking.
97,000 are victims of alcohol related sexual assault or date rape.
Unsafe Sex: As a result of one night of excessive drinking, 13 % of college students reported having unprotected sex
More than 100,000 students report being too drunk to know if they consented to having sex.
25% of college students report having academic consequences due to drinking.
19% met the criteria for an alcohol use disorder
5,860,000 drive under the influence of alcohol.
Drugs
2006: 34 % of college students reported using illicit substances
41 % in 2014.
Most On-Campus Drug Related Arrests in 2013 per 1000 students
1. SUNY New Paltz (Rate: 13.9)
2. SUNY Oswego (rate 12.3)
3. University of West Georgia (Rate 11.8)
4. Western Illinois University (Rate 11.4)
5. Coastal Carolina University (Rate 10.0)
6. SUNY Oneonta (Rate: 9.8)
7. SUNY College of Plattsburgh (Rate 9.4)
8. Northeastern University (Rate 9.2)
9. Northern Michigan University (Rate 9.1)
10. IUPUI (Rate 8.7)
Marijuana
In 2014,
5.9 percent of college students said they smoked marijuana 20 or more times in the prior month.
In 2007: that number was 3.5 %.
It’s the highest rate of near-daily use reported since 1980.
Fact: Near-daily use of marijuana has surpassed daily cigarette smoking. Only 5.2 percent of college students said they smoked cigarettes every day, down from about 19 percent in 1999.
Featured Programs
21% of college students smoke marijuana at least once a month
Up from 17 % in 2006
34 % of college students said they used marijuana at least once a year
Up from 30 % in 2006
Survey: Is marijuana dangerous?–
Of all 19 to 22 year old high school graduates
55 % saw marijuana use as dangerous in 2006
35 % saw marijuana as dangerous in 2014
Prescription Stimulants (Adderall, Ritalin, etc.)
Stimulants are abused for many reasons, including –
– Help focus studying
44% use stimulants to study or improve academic performance
– Athletic performance
– Staying awake
31 % say they misuse or abuse them to stay awake
– Weight loss
– Recreation
66 % of college seniors will be offered prescription stimulants for non-medical use during their college career
31 % will use at least once
Full time college students are 2x more likely to abuse Adderall than their peers who aren’t in college.
Of those abusing stimulants, 57 % received the medication from a friend.
16 million prescriptions for stimulants like Adderall were written in 2012
That’s 3X more than in 2006
10 % report obtaining it from a family member
6 % from a “dealer”
Of those who abuse prescription stimulants:
60 % abuse Adderall
20 % abuse Ritalin
14 % abuse Vyvanse
All of which are prescribed for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
Need help?
Call 1-800-662-HELP (4357) [Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration]
Or 1-855-399-9739 [Recovery.org]
Sources:
http://www.niaaa.nih.gov/alcohol-health/overview-alcohol-consumption/moderate-binge-drinking
http://www.niaaa.nih.gov/alcohol-health/overview-alcohol-consumption/alcohol-facts-and-statistics
http://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/CollegeFactSheet/CollegeFactSheet.pdf
http://www.livescience.com/52061-college-students-drug-use-marijuana.html
http://www.drugfree.org/newsroom/adhd-survey-2014
http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2015/09/01/daily-pot-smoking-on-college-campuses-reaches-a-35-year-high
https://www.addictioncenter.com/college/
http://www.projectknow.com/discover/drugs-on-campus-2014/