Social Media vs. Alcohol Use

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College party | Daily Hind News

    We've all been to at least one college party, right? Whether you were the designated driver or the one dancing on tables you know you got some good pictures. You also know that in two days your Instagram feed will be as crowded as the dance floor was with reminders of how much fun Bethany's "rager" was.

  The problem...

    A study published by Duquesne Univerity states "almost 55% of full-time college students between the ages of 18 and 22 drank alcohol in the past month and about 37% engaged in binge drinking". This is still a significant issue. Young adults and college students regularly engage in the use of social media. As the article, Social Media, Alcohol, and Young people explains Social media is a large part of our lives. I can't remember a day I went without checking my Snapchat or spending 5-10 minutes scrolling through TikTok. This addiction is a serious issue. Not only does it cause physical damage to our eyes by exposing them to extended amounts of blue light but it causes emotional and social damage 

Phone Notifications | PCMAG Digital Group

According to Pew Research Center individuals aged 18-25 are one of the heaviest social media users. This is exactly the issue. In those 5-10 minutes of scrolling or snap chatting I can be assured I will see at least one post about drinking. These posts aren't always in the best of tastes either. Snapchat's saying "This is what Saturdays are for" or videos of young adults engaging in drinking games with captions like "FAKE BODY. FAKE ALCOHOL" in order to evade the algorithm's restrictions. While these games can be fun for adults college students are less likely to understand their limits and less likely to do so safely. As said by the alcohol rehab guide "51% of young drivers who died in traffic crashes tested positive for alcohol". Not only is it unsafe in a physical sense it's unsafe socially. Imagine pulling up to a job interview in 10 years only to have your boss pull up a TikTok you made of a drinking game. Years of accomplishment gone for a 60-second shot. In the journal Social Media, Alcohol, and Young People it is said that behaviors that risk physical health are commonly advertised the emotional and social aspects are not. This is yet again a source of misinformation.

Social Media is the cause ?!


Teambuilding| Cozy Meal
    It's not to say that social media is all the blame. Many good things can come out of interaction on TikTok, Snapchat, or Instagram. In many cases, there are sources of positive content. Educational videos and discussions online are a massive part of today's educational system. However, statistics from the National Institute of Health show that this is totally dependent on the individual's content. 50% of people are more likely to drink if they see a friend doing it and 36% are more likely if they see a friend of a friend doing it. This can reflect both ways content showing friends engaging in safe practices around alcohol means peers are more likely to also engage in safe practices; if friends engage in not-so-healthy practices then peers are also more likely to engage in not-so-healthy interactions.

THE SOLUTION

    Based on the statistics from the NHI we can assume that if we encourage healthy drinking habits then friends will also engage in healthier habits. Next time you think about posting pictures from last night's party evaluate them. Are they encouraging good behaviors? Is it going to create any negative connotations? We can also advocate for better advertising around alcohol. Any person could make an account and interact with alcoholic posts and content on various social media sites with no repercussions. Regardless of age, there are very few safety measures. As the journal Social Media, Alcohol, and Young People says most software only asks you to enter a birthdate. There is no need for actual verification. In the age of digital media measures such as needing a copy of a photo ID a very reasonable ask.

Possible ID Checking software | Lightico

Placing strict age restrictions with age verification is only one of the many ways that social media could be safer. The way alcohol is marketed could be much safer. On Twitter, many brands use hashtags that are the day of the week specific hashtags, #MojitoMonday or #ThirstyThurday. Tags like this are most times non-alcohol specific meaning they can land on the pages of minors or underage individuals. While there are restrictions on advertising there isn't nearly enough. If we can't advertise alcohol with Santa then alcohol shouldn't be advertised to minors.


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