With youth binge drinking rates on the rise in Alberta, it's time for the provincial government to start working more closely with health-care providers and others to find solutions.
According to Alberta Health, binge drinking among Albertans age 12 to 19 has increased from 13 to 19 per cent over the past six years. As well, more than 50 per cent of students who drink alcohol now report binge drinking at least once a month.
Alberta Health defines binge drinking as consuming five or more alcoholic drinks on one occasion.
The findings have prompted Dr. James Talbot, Alberta's chief medical officer of health, to call for action, saying binge drinking leads to more cases of impaired driving, sexual assaults and other problems among Alberta's young people.
“Heavy episodic drinking is a pattern of alcohol use that often leads to serious health and social issues,” said Talbot in a recent report called Youth Binge Drinking in Alberta.
“The consequences of binge drinking are considerable, and this danger is significantly increased for adolescents. Early alcohol use can also increase the risk of social problems and negative behaviours such as delinquency.
“The significant costs of alcohol misuse make it a priority issue.”
The financial cost of alcohol abuse in Alberta includes more than $400 million in direct health-care costs and $275 million in law enforcement costs per year, according to Alberta Health.
The pressures on youths to drink alcohol have never been greater than they are today – pressures that include peer pressure, increased exposure to alcohol advertising online, and the proliferation of liquor sale opportunities in many communities.
One possible solution to youth binge drinking could be for the government to increase taxes on liquor, he said.
“Alcohol taxation or markups can be used to successfully reduce underage drinking because youth, who typically have lower incomes, are more sensitive to higher prices,” he said.
The Alberta government should work more closely with the Alberta Gaming and Liquor Commission to find solutions to the youth binge drinking problem, he said.
The commission is currently conducting a review of provincial liquor pricing policies. Hopefully positive suggestions will come out of that review.
There is no current move to prohibit alcohol sales in Alberta – nor should there be. Yet at the same time, reducing alcohol abuse, including binge drinking, among teens and young adults would be in everyone's best interest.
As such, the provincial government should be encouraged to take a greater leadership role in helping to reverse the increased youth binge drinking trend.
Reducing youth binge drinking should be a priority for Alberta, as Dr. Talbot rightly suggests.
