With large numbers of high school and college students using and abusing alcohol, UNM and Albuquerque residents are enhancing their focus on law enforcement and prevention programs in the hopes of saving lives.
Statistics provided by a variety of organizations point to a national youth drinking problem.
l The average boy drinks his first alcoholic beverage at age 11, while girls try it at 13.
l The leading cause of death for 15 to 24-year-olds is automobile crashes, homicides and suicides. Alcohol is the leading factor in all three, according to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.
l More than five million high school students across the nation binge drink at least once a month, according to the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University.
l Forty-four percent of college students qualify as binge drinkers, and more than one-fourth of underage college students have fake identification cards, according to Harvard School of Public Health's "College Alcohol Study."
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l Academic consequences such as missing class, falling behind and receiving lower grades effect 25 percent of college drinkers.
Jill Anne Yeagley, program manager for the Campus Office of Substance Abuse Prevention, works with the Student Health Center peer educators to deliver presentations and information to UNM students about problems associated with alcohol abuse.
A survey conducted by the office in spring 2000 showed that 68 percent of UNM students report to using zero to four drinks on average.
Yeagley developed a UNM Designated Driver Program to prevent drunk driving and to offer incentives to those who participate. A student can join by signing a form and receiving a UNM Designated Driver Identification Card. Seventeen bars around campus, such as Coaches and Banana Joe's, will accept the card, stamping it and providing free soft drinks and coffee. Cover charges may also be discounted. After two stamps on the card, the office will give the student two passes to a United Theater and put them in a drawing for a trip for two to Las Vegas.
According to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, alcoholism comprises of four components: a craving, or urge to drink; the loss of control or not being able to stop drinking; a physical dependence or withdrawal symptoms such as nausea, sweating or anxiety; tolerance, or the need to drink greater amounts to feel drunk.
Parental communication with children is often perceived as an effective way of preventing alcohol-related problems among youth.
Terry Huertaz, executive director for Mothers Against Drunk Driving, said drinking at a party is a risk that many teens are willing to take. She added that, as a result, parents must talk about alcoholism with their children.
"There is nothing worse to deal with than a loss of a young life, especially if it was totally preventable as is the case with alcohol," Huertaz said. "We have failed as a community if we allow this to happen to our youth."
The Albuquerque Police Department began targeting underage drinking this year through a program that has drawn fire from some youths but is supported by others who are fighting alcohol abuse.
APD received $85,000 in state grants this year to patrol the city seven days a week to regulate alcohol use. The party patrols will issue any minor in possession charge, and make arrests to individuals who are involved in distributing alcohol to minors.
Huertaz began fighting alcohol abuse after a high school student she knew was killed in a drunk driving accident. Huertaz went on a ride along with the APD Party Patrol and supports them 100 percent.
"They are not targeted at individuals, they are done strategically and no constitutional rights are being violated," Huertaz said. "It is used as a deterrent rather than an intervention."
After the party patrol arrives at the scene, parents are called to the party to pick up teens. APD wants parents to open their eyes to the reality of underage drinking.
Karessa Gallegos, a student at Eldorado High School, disagrees with the party patrols. "It's not right, you can't even go to parties to hang out with friends," Gallegos said. "It is not going to stop us, we're still going to do it anyways. We'll just have to be more careful."
The party patrol officers wrote 1,051 citations in three months of operation. In addition, APD made seven felony arrests of adults and juveniles, 35 misdemeanor arrests and 249 moving violation traffic citations.
Mothers Against Drunk Driving has a mission to stop drunk driving, support the victims of the violent crime and prevent underage drinking.
"People day in and day out are destroying their lives because of alcohol," Huertaz said. "Nobody wins in a drunk driving crash."
For more information, contact Mothers Against Drunk Driving at 255-2955 or Campus Office of Substance Abuse Prevention at 277-2795.
