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From the Thursday, April 9 Chronicle Herald:

Today (April 9) is National Alcohol Screening Day, which raises awareness about alcohol misuse (i.e., excessive consumption of alcohol that alarms others and that results in guilt, injuries, blackouts, and/or irresponsibility).

In 2012, more than five million Canadians over age 12 reported alcohol misuse in the past year. Here in Nova Scotia, nearly 20 per cent of adults consume alcohol in a manner that is harmful to their health. And Nova Scotian students are especially heavy drinkers, with 51 per cent of them misusing alcohol at least once per month.

Each year, alcohol accounts for about 3,100 hospital admissions and contributes to around 230 deaths in Nova Scotia. Injuries, violence, alcohol poisoning, and risky sexual behaviours are short-term health risks tied to alcohol misuse.

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Among undergraduates, alcohol misuse is linked to missing classes, lower grades, sexual assaults, disturbed sleep, and relationship problems. Not surprisingly, alcohol misuse in Nova Scotia has an estimated annual economic cost of $419 million.

Alcohol misuse is preventable. Recommended approaches to lowering alcohol misuse, and many of its destructive consequences, include restricting drivers under age 21 to a blood alcohol concentration level of zero, lowering the blood alcohol concentration level allowed for drivers of any age, raising the minimum legal drinking age from 19 to 21, reducing alcohol misuse at bars by training staff, having routine screening and brief counselling by health professionals (e.g., psychologists or physicians), and increasing government control on alcohol sales (e.g., laws that control the number of and the operation of alcohol outlets).

Co-author Dr. Simon B. Sherry is a clinical psychologist and an associate professor in the department of psychology and neuroscience at HÂþ»­ University. Co-author Cynthia Ramasubbu is research co-ordinator for HÂþ»­ University’s personality research team.

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