Tutors join in student boozing

Dublin. Students are no longer alone in admitting to binge drinking - lecturers are getting in on the act, according to a study of four colleges by the Irish Health Promotion Unit.

Half the students interviewed and a quarter of staff admitted binge drinking at least once a week. Some of them reported drinking more than eight standard drinks two to three times a week - 25.2 per cent of students and 7.7 per cent of staff.

One in 100 staff admitted drinking at least this much every day. The definition of binge drinking used in Irish studies is higher than that used by the World Health Organisation, which uses six standard drinks or 60g of pure alcohol as its definition.

Eight standard drinks amounts to 80g of pure alcohol - the equivalent of four pints, a bottle of wine or seven measures of spirits.

The report says the prevalence of binge drinking among students raises concerns because it is related to health, social and psychological problems. The unit suggests drinking habits are established well before students start college.

While Irish students may be drinking too much, they are smoking less than the rest of the population. Twenty per cent of students - and 13.7 per cent of staff - smoke. This is below the national figure of per cent.