Spring break gives students a little rest between midterms and the second half of the semester.
But for some, the five-day vacation is an excuse for alcohol abuse, said Jill Anne Yeagley, director of Campus Office of Substance Abuse Prevention.
"A lot of students already know how to have fun and unwind without alcohol as well as with," she said. "But there are occasions where students are more likely to put themselves at risk, and spring break is one of those times."
COSAP, which is inside Mesa Vista Hall, wants to work with the University community to make sure students stay safe over break, Yeagley said.
John Steiner, a health educator at COSAP, said there are many misconceptions about drinking.
"The old definition of binge drinking was five drinks at a sitting for men, four for women," he said. "Now, binge drinking is considered any drinking that raises the blood alcohol content to .08 or above, which is the legal driving limit in New Mexico."
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Steiner said a 120-pound female who has three drinks in two hours has a blood alcohol content of .08, but a 170-pound male could drink double that before reaching the same BAC.
For males and females under 21, the legal limit is .02 BAC.
"Another thing students are often confused about is what a 'standard drink' is," Steiner said. "It's a half ounce of pure alcohol, which is equivalent to a 12-ounce beer, a 5-ounce wine glass or one shot of 80-proof alcohol."
To improve students' awareness of just how much they're drinking, COSAP will have a table set up at the Safe Spring Break event from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. today near the SUB.
"They'll be able to pour (water) freehand to how much they think is a 12-ounce beer or a shot," Yeagley said. "Then we'll measure it so they can see how accurate they are."
COSAP's Web site, Unm.edu/~cosap, offers alcohol consumption surveys for students.
UNM students have about 4.45 drinks per week, compared to the national average of 5.8 drinks per week, according to the survey.
UNM's binge drinking rate is also lower than the national average at 38 percent compared to 44.3 percent, Steiner said.
According to the survey, 32.1 percent of students admitted to driving under the influence one or more times in the past 12 months, and 66.4 percent said they had served as a designated driver in the past year.
Yeagley said COSAP has tried to cut down the drinking and driving trend at UNM by encouraging students to find a designated driver.
Another option is Safe Ride, 242-RIDE, which will pick people up from any bar or restaurant in Bernalillo County and drop them off at their doorstep for free, Yeagley said.
The D-Ride shuttle will also take people home from Fourth Street and Central Avenue between 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. for $5, Yeagley said.
But not every drinking student is old enough to get into a bar.
Lisa Glynn, who is earning her master's in clinical psychology, said undergraduates between 18 and 20 make up the heaviest-drinking segment of the U.S. population.
"College drinking actually peaks at age 21," Glynn said. "So, intervening earlier is crucial in preventing problematic use. Waiting until students are 21 would be too late in many cases."
Glynn said she is working on a study that will give personalized, nonjudgmental feedback to participants about their drinking.
"This kind of feedback has been shown to reduce problematic drinking in undergraduates, and reducing problematic drinking might reduce behaviors that impact the entire UNM community, like drunk driving and unplanned sex," Glynn said.
Yeagley said she hopes students will use spring break to have fun, relax and be safe.
"I challenge students to have fun without getting wasted," she said.
