Based on 2007 data from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, federal researchers say that 21.1 percent of Americans ages 18 to 25 have alcohol or other drug problems serious enough to require addiction treatment, but few of them recognized their need for help or sought assistance from a treatment facility, according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). Alcohol and drug problems are epidemic in America.

In addition to the lost potential of a large number of youth and rising related healthcare costs, alcohol-related deaths and drunk driving are all increasing among U.S. college students, according to a report from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA). A June 2009 report by NIAAA found that alcohol-related deaths and binge drinking at college campuses continue to rise. In fact, a 2007 report from the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University found that 49 percent of full-time college students binge drink and/or abuse prescription and illegal drugs at this time.

In addition, alcohol-related deaths among college students ages 18-24 rose from 1,440 in 1998 to 1,825 in 2005, according to the study by researcher Ralph Hingson, director of NIAAA's Division of Epidemiology and Prevention Research, and colleagues. Most of the deaths were due to traffic-related incidents.

The incidence of students dying from alcohol poisoning is also of great concern, particularly when the proportion of students reporting binge drinking rose from 42 percent to 45 percent from 1998 to 2005, and reported drunk driving rose from 26.5 percent of students to 29 percent.

"These are tragically and unacceptably high figures that indicate an urgent need for colleges and surrounding communities to implement evidence-based prevention and counseling programs," said Hingson.

One such prevention program is Red Watch Band, a volunteer program started at Stony Brook University in New York which aims to teach students what to do when someone passes out from binge drinking, USA Today reported June 15.

The program was founded after the son of a Stony Brook professor died of an alcohol overdose in 2008. The program involves 2.5 hours of CPR training and one hour of alcohol-related emergency training. After students complete the training, they are given a red watch to symbolize the 'band' of students who are trained to 'watch' over one another when 'every second counts.

"Our students absolutely need to know how to stay alive, and we need to be doing something to equip them and empower them to create a culture where they can look out for each other and care about each other," said Jenny Hwang, associate dean and director for prevention and outreach at Stony Brook.
As drinking-related deaths on college campuses rise, so has the need for programs like Red Watch Band, says Tim Workman, assistant professor in the school of allied health sciences at Baylor College of Medicine. However, he added, such efforts need to be combined with prevention education.

"We don't just want to see an increase in 911 calls," Workman said. "What we want to see is a decrease in incidents." More than 100 other colleges and universities have considered starting the program on their campuses this fall.

Colleges have expressed concern to LEGACY about students resistence to taking friends to hospital emergency rooms when friends are passed out from excess alcohol. This reluctance has been at the root of some students' death from alcohol overdose. It is important to let college students know that it is better to err on the safe side and get friends to the hospital when there is any concern over a potential alcohol overdose.

Information comes from Join Together's web articles:
Study: Off-Campus Drinking Can be Curbed with Community's Help,
June 26, 2009
College Program Aims to Curb Alcohol-Related Deaths ,
June 26, 2009

College Students take the test: "Is My Drinking Risky?"