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Turning 21 years old never seemed so deadly. It’s absolutely amazing how accepting Americans are of alcohol sometimes. We embrace it and even encourage it with games such as “21 for 21″. According to this popular alcoholic drinking game, a person (who is typically in college by this age) drinks 21 alcoholic drinks on their 21st birthday. And according to a recent article by HealthDay, researchers at the University of Missouri determined that many students jeopardize not only their health but their lives as well when they engage in such games.

Patricia Rutledge, an associate professor at the University of Missouri led a study in which researchers sampled 2,518 students, all of whom had already turned 21 at the University of Missouri in Columbia. Of the people interviewed, 83% said that they had consumed alcohol to celebrate their 21st birthday, admitting also that they had consumed excessive amounts of alcohol. Even more horrific, perhaps, is the fact that 12% of men and women reported that they had consumed exactly 21 alcoholic beverage. Shockingly, an additional 22% of males and 12% of females said that they had exceeded that number.

Drinking alcohol is a joke. No, wait- it’s a game. A lot of young people STILL see no issue with drinking. Even though there are signs, billboards and advertising everywhere- even though teachers teach students that drinking is bad for their health, students and even children everywhere insist on doing it. Many, if not all of those who drink alcohol know about all of the devastating physical effects of alcohol but don’t care; it’s a rite of passage, many of them would argue. I wonder how much arguing they actually do when they’ve went beyond their limits and are passed out somewhere.

Perhaps part of the problem lies in the fact that many young drinkers fail to see the long term effects of alcoholism. Dr. Evaristo Akerele is the vice president and director of medical and psychiatric affairs at Phoenix House in New York City and was cited in the article by saying:

What generally happens is that we are normally protected by alcohol when you pass out before you get too drunk and get to the stage of death. What happens here is somebody keeps the mouth open and keeps putting more and more alcohol so you override [the tendency to pass out first]. It’s potentially fatal.

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Tags: Alcoholism, Drug News, Health and Wellness //