Did you know that drinking four or more alcoholic drinks during one sitting is considered binge drinking? According to a recent report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, binge drinking is becoming more of an issue for adults in the United States.
In fact, “more than 38 million U.S. adults binge drink an average of four times a month and the most drinks they consume on average is eight,” according to the report.
Binge drinking can lead to death in some cases, and can put people at risk for health issues like liver disease and cancer, as well as car crashes and violence, the report states. The physical consequences are documented, but how is mental health impacted by binge drinking? Experts weigh in on the situation.
Jeff Wolfsberg, a drug education specialist who has been interviewed for FOX News and other news outlets, said in an email that first of all binge drinking as a term isn’t so clear-cut as it appears.
“Depending on the person's tolerance and how people define ‘session,’ you can get a lot of debate,” Wolfsberg said. “With [the report’s] definition, almost all college drinkers binge. But for some, a few beers/drinks can cause harm.”
He offers an alternative term instead of binge drinking to lessen the confusion.
“I prefer to use the term ‘dangerous drinking’ when conducting workshops,” Wolfsberg said. “This is drinking in a manner that can cause harm [by] impairing a person's physical and emotional well-being. It allows each person to create their own standard of what that means rather than attaching a number.”
That being said, Wolfsberg explained that dangerous drinking can harm mental health, and mental health issues can even lead to the drinking issues.
“The chicken and the egg problems exists, because when treating someone you ask is the depression/anxiety causing the heavy drinking, or is the heavy drinking causing the depression and anxiety,” he said.
“Both are true. I think most dangerous drinking masks an internal emotional conflict that is only worsened by heavy drinking. It is important for anyone working with someone who has depression or anxiety to ask about drinking and other drug use.”
Dangerous drinking can affect both body and mind at the same time. And remember that New Year’s resolution to get healthy and lose a few pounds? When you drink heavily that basically goes out the window, and that can’t be positive for your emotional health either.
“Dangerous drinking can also compromise a person's resolve to stick to healthy eating (often why people on diets are encouraged not to drink, it's not always about the calories, but what decisions are made once a few drinks hits the brain), a night of dangerous drinking makes exercise less likely, and often hammers the neuropathways associated with depression and anxiety,” Wolfsberg said.
Lisa Lannon, the co-founder of Journey Healing Centers which is an alcohol and drug treatment center with headquarters in Scottsdale, Ariz., said in an email that when people binge drink they don’t usually think of mental health consequences.
“Blacking out is the most common effect of binge drinking,” Lannon said. “Blacking out can cause a person to become a victim of crime. Rape, violence [and] theft lead to other risky behaviors, all which can all cause long-term mental health conditions. Other mental health consequences associated with binge drinking are anxiety, memory loss, depression and alcohol dependence.”
Weston Kensinger, an assistant professor of health promotion at State University of New York at Oswego, said in an email that “binge drinking is not a new trend.” Also, people with mental disorders to begin with, such as depression schizophrenia, anxiety, manic-depressive disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder, can be more likely to binge drink than individuals without these disorders.
Binge drinkers seem to have a certain mentality as well.
“Binge drinkers usually drink in such a fashion in hopes to quickly escape reality,” Kensinger said. “However, ultimately they become more depressed and their mental health issues may become fully evident once again. In one study by Wang & Patterson (2001), they found that women in particular there may be a heightened risk of depression associated with binge drinking.”
Although the consequences of binge drinking are clearly negative, there is the initial allure of having a buzz.
“Alcohol is classified as a depressant. However, as one’s blood alcohol concentration [BAC] begins to rise, they begin to feel a feeling of euphoria,” Kensinger said. “This feeling of happiness soon begins to fade though, as after their BAC drops ... they ultimately become more depressed.”
Some people are now mixing caffeine/energy drinks with alcohol in order to avoid a buzz-kill.
“The caffeine-containing beverages [temporarily] counteract the depressant effects of alcohol, making it easier to binge drink while not immediately feeling the negative effects of alcohol,” Kensinger said.
“A 2009 study by Kensinger found that those who choose to combine alcohol and energy drinks had more motivation to drink alcohol as well as derived more perceived positive reinforcements. If an individual suffering from a mental health issue chooses to engage in mixing alcohol and energy drinks, they may have more inclination to binge drink.”
Women who binge drink might also participate in a behavior called "drunkarexia".
“This is where individuals consume little or no calories during the day so that that they can drink massive amounts of alcohol at night or at a party and not gain weight,” Kensinger said.
“This behavior may be linked to body image issues, in an attempt to starve the body by not eating food and consuming calories only through binge drinking in an attempt to maintain a low body weight while getting intoxicated at night.”
Sources:
CDC. Binge drinking is bigger problem than previously thought. CDC Online Newsroom – Press Release: January 10, 2012. http://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2012/p0110_binge_drinking.html
Wolfsberg, Jeff. Email interview. Jan. 17, 2012.
Lannon, Lisa. Email interview. Jan. 17. 2012.
Kensinger, Weston. Email interview. Jan. 17, 2012.
Reviewed January 18, 2012
by Michele Blacksberg RN
Edited by Jody Smith