Binge drinking is a dangerous activity but most people minimize the risks or don’t understand them all when they’re in the midst of it. Adults binge drink up to four times a month, on average with college students more likely to binge drink than any other group.
What is Binge Drinking
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention define binge drinking as drinking enough to have a blood alcohol content of 0.08 or higher. This means having five or more drinks in a period of two hours, and four in the same period for women. If you drink this much or more in one setting, you binge drink. If you drink and get drunk enough to be over the legal driving limit, you binge drink.
Harm and Risk
Binge drinking can be harmful in a lot of ways. Accidents may occur, including drowning, motor vehicles, or other types of accidents. Other accidents are related to the lower inhibitions people experience. Unprotected sex is more likely when a person binges and can lead to pregnancy or disease transmission. Assaults are also more likely. Binge drinking is also bad for your health due to the large quantities of alcohol. Drinking to excess is bad for health. It leads to liver disease, high blood pressure, heart disease, and neurological damage. Binge drinking worsens chronic health issues like diabetes.
Treatment
Just because a person binge drinks doesn’t make them an alcoholic but that does not mean you will not benefit from treatment. Binge drinking treatment can help people learn their substance abuse patterns and troubling behaviors. Some people learn to live with drinking in moderation while others stop altogether and live a happier life in sobriety. Drinking in moderation is better for everyone in terms of increased risk factors associated with binge drinking but problem drinkers often are suggested to stay sober without using any alcohol because of triggers to use other substances as well and to relapse. Addiction is a lifelong, chronic condition which requires a lifetime of work to combat. For people who struggle with addiction, there are challenges to overcome but overall people are healthier and more able to pursue their personal goals when they are in recovery, sober, and feeling more in control of their lives. Treatment can provide a pathway to living a better, more productive life.
Arbor Behavioral Healthcare knows that lifetime sobriety, health, and wellness, are completely possible. Each of our treatment programs offer the opportunity for holistic healing utilizing an integrative approach for the recovery of mind, body, and spirit. You can recover. You will recover. Call us today for more information: 844-560-7269