Binge Drinking

Indicator Definition 
Percent of adults (ages 18–64 years) who binge drank (men having five or more drinks on one occasion, women having four or more) in the past month.

Adults who binge drink in Colorado4

Adults who binge drink by sex in Colorado5

Indicator Significance 
Approximately 100,000 Americans die annually from alcohol abuse. It is the third leading preventable cause of death in the United States. Binge drinking is linked to numerous tragic side effects, including unintentional injuries, motor vehicle crashes, suicide, alcohol poisoning and liver failure. In addition, binge drinking has high economic and social costs, including violent behavior, child neglect and lost productivity in the workplace. Between 1993 and 2001, the total number of binge-drinking episodes among U.S. adults increased from approximately 1.2 billion to 1.5 billion, an increase of 17 percent per person.¹

Colorado Specifics
One in five Coloradans ages 18–64 reports having engaged in binge drinking at least once in the past month. This is higher than the national average and places Colorado 33^rd among states. While national studies show that binge drinking rates are highest for young adults, the majority of binge drinking episodes occurred among those age 26 and older. In Colorado the adult binge drinking rate is almost twice as high for men as for women. The binge drinking rate in Colorado has changed little since 2001, reflecting national trends.

Promising Initiatives
In Colorado
The Student Alcohol Management (SAM) Foundation seeks to educate college students and their parents about the risks of alcohol consumption and poisoning. The Foundation offers financial assistance to those colleges and universities that do not currently have an alcohol awareness program. The SAM Foundation was established after the alcohol-poisoning death of a student at Colorado State University in 2004.²

Elsewhere
Pathways Community Behavioral Healthcare, Inc., a non-profit organization with 32 locations throughout Missouri, treats a variety of mental health problems and provides comprehensive alcohol and drug abuse treatment programs. Substance abuse treatment focuses on the unique needs of both adolescents and adults, with different programs for each age group.³

Adults who binge drink⁶

Text

1. Naimi TS, et al. “Binge Drinking Among U.S. Adults,” Journal of the American Medical Association; January 1, 2003.
   
2. The Sam Spady Foundation.
   
3. Pathways Community Behavioral Healthcare Inc.
   

Charts

4. Source: Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment and Colorado Health Institute analysis of Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 2000–2007.
   
5. Source: Colorado Health Institute analysis of Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, 2007, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
   
6. Source: Colorado Health Institute analysis of Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, 2007, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.