Small Study: “Pre-Drinking” May Nearly Double Alcohol Consumption.

The Los Angeles Times (11/9, Morin) “Booster Shots” blog reports that whether it’s called “‘pre-drinking,’ ‘pre-partying’ or ‘pre-funking’…it usually involves chugging cheap alcoholic drinks before heading out to a bar, club or sporting event.” And, “while addiction experts estimate that 65% to 75% of college-age youths engage in such boozy behavior, a Swiss study” published online Nov. 8 in the journal Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research “concludes that such ‘pre-loaded’ evenings are far more likely to end in blackouts, unprotected sex, unplanned drug use or injury.”

HealthDay (11/9, Dotinga) reports that in order to arrive at these conclusions, “researchers tracked the drinking behavior of 183 young adults — average age 23 — over five weeks on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays. By cellphone, the researchers kept tabs on what the participants drank and where.” Notably, “those who drank before going out to bars consumed an average of 7.1 drinks a night, compared to 4.2 drinks by those who just went to bars and 4.3 who drank elsewhere, such as home or a public place.” The Daily Mail (UK) (11/9, Bates) also covers the story.

Impulsive Female College Students At Risk For Problem Drinking. HealthDay (11/9, Preidt) reports, “Female college students who act impulsively when they’re distressed are at increased risk of developing a drinking problem,” according to a study published online Nov. 8 in the journal Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research. “The study included 319 women (235 drinkers and 84 nondrinkers) in their first semester at a large university in the southeastern United States.” Notably, “The largest increase in alcohol dependence symptoms was seen in women who had high negative urgency and said they wanted to drink to change their emotions (either to enhance positive feelings or get rid of negative feelings),” the study found.

Related Links:

— ““Pre-drinking” or “pre-funking” common among young alcohol users, “Monte Morin, Los Angeles Times, November 8, 2012.

Posted in In The News.