The NSDUH Report: Nonmedical Use of Adderall® among Full-Time College Students

Nearly 90% of the full-time college students who had used Adderall® nonmedically in the past year also were past month binge alcohol drinkers and more than half were heavy alcohol users.

From the Office of Applied Studies (OAS) - Among persons aged 18 to 22, full-time college students were twice as likely to use Adderall® nonmedically in the past year as those who had not been in college at all or were only part-time students.

Students under the legal drinking age who used Adderall® were also more likely to be binge drinkers or heavy drinkers than their underage counterparts who had not used Adderall® nonmedically.

For more interesting statistics from OAS and to read the National Survey on Drug Use and Health report click here.

To learn more about risks and consequences, signs and symptoms of the abuse of prescription drugs like Adderall and Ritalin click here to visit Parents. The Anti Drug.

Why are college students abusing stimulant drugs? For some insight to this question click here to visit the website of University of Miami's student newspaper The Miami Hurricane or click here to read an interesting article from Canada's McLean's Magazine.

New Study Reveals Snapshot of a Binge Drinker

CDC Says Typical Binge Drinker is White, Young, Relatively Affluent Male

From Join Together - A new study from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says that binge drinking is most common among whites, men, individuals aged 18-24, and those with an annual income of more than $50,000 annually, HealthDay News reported April 2.

CDC researchers studied data on about 63,000 Americans and found that 17.5 percent of binge drinkers were white, 24.3 percent were male, and 27.4 percent were between the ages of 18 and 24 (24.4 percent were ages 24-34).

To read the complete story in Join Together click here.

What defines binge drinking? What are the risks? To learn more click here.

For more information on binge drinking specifically in adolescents and college students visit SAMHSA here.

For a variety of scientific research news about binge drinking visit ScienceDaily.

Absolut Responsibility: Vodka Company Promoting Moderation

Just weeks after debuting television advertising during the Grammy Awards, Absolout Vodka is unveiling their "Recognize the Moment" campaign to promote responsible drinking.

From the New York Times - Advertising about drinking responsibly has been appearing for decades. One notable effort — “Know when to say when” — was introduced by Anheuser-Busch in 1982, when the economy was mired in recession.

Responsibility campaigns are considered an effective counterweight to activists who seek to limit or ban advertising for beer, wine and liquor. Now, a best-selling vodka brand is significantly increasing the digital presence of its moderation messages by devoting a section of its Web site to helping drinkers “enjoy with Absolut responsibility.” The moderation messages for Absolut are expected to go live Monday.

For the complete story in the New York Times click here.

To learn more about Absolut's responsibility campaign "Recognizing the Moment" visit their website here.

CBS News' 60 Minutes: Drinking Age Debate

The Debate On Lowering The Drinking Age
60 Minutes: Some Say Age Should Be Lowered To 18, But MADD And Others Strongly Disagree

February 22, 2009 (CBS) - Last fall, a group of over 100 college presidents - including the heads of Dartmouth, Virginia Tech and Duke - signed a declaration stating that the 21-year-old drinking age is not working, and fireworks went off. But the college presidents got what they wanted: a national debate about the drinking age. When the age was raised to 21 in the mid-1980s, the goal was to reduce highway fatalities. But everyone knows that the 21 age limit hasn't stopped minors from drinking.

And now some experts believe it's actually contributing to an increase in extreme drinking.

Lesley Stahl examines the debate over lowering the drinking age to 18, a controversial idea embraced by some people and roundly criticized by others.

View the CBS News video of Lesley Stahl's report here.
Read the complete CBS news story here.