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The Goderich Signal-Star, 1975-04-17, Page 9• L 31 Dec. 1-0 9, 81 '1 . 6 5 4 Public Libxcary, , 52 Mp treat St.', Goder .C. , Qnt. N7At 2G4 ane 0 oaericry 1 BY SHIRLEY J. K LLER There's a new saying w ''re all going to be hearing a great d al of 'in the months ahead. That catchy phrase is: Mix, ' a little thinking • With your drinking. The Ontario government through the Ministry of Health has just Iauched what Minister Frank S. Miller terms "the m'ost comprehensive alcohol education program ever .undertaken in the province". No, it doesn't preach total abstinence as some people would perhaps prefer. It is a reasonable, health -oriented „approach, designed to reach the average consumer; not the problem drinker or the alcoholic. "More people in -Ontario are drinking, more alcohol than ever before," said Mr. Miller. "They are drinking in greater variety, on more occasions, in more situations and at a younger age • thaw at any--prevloos time CA" our And the government for the .Province of Ontario is concerned...re II cerned. HEALTH • As the per capita consumption goes up, so does the number of people who drink enough to cause damage.to their health, according to Hon. Frank Miller. , One, of the brochures produced by the Ontario government is entitled "Make Mine a Double". It starts out by stating simply and correctly: Alcohol is .a drug. • It continues: "It (alcohol) acts as a general anesthetic, going straight to the "blood stream and causing; theebra in to Malfunction." There's a description of a person who is enjoying an evening out on the town with booze as the principal en- tertainment. .. ' First there is the dizziness after, a "little more than their limit Next there's th slurred speech; the1blu-rred. vision. T re, follows a certain amount , of co' dination and muscle control losses. People became disoriented,, con- fused, unreasonably elated. or depressed. Then staggering., loss- of balance, double vision. If they. drink too much, they get sick or their brain shuts off and they pass .out. Itis a medical fact that, recurrent evenings of immoderate drinking cane inflict a lot .of abuse on. the, brain. • What's more„,�drinking too much too often can cause considerable bodily harm and perhaps even .permanent damage. - Habitual heavy drinking over a long period of time can sneak up on you, slowly harming you in several ways simultaneously. First it can deteriorate your health -heavy drinkers, can suffer loss of appetite, vitamin deficiencies, stomach inflammation,. skin problems; infections and sexual �,, impotence. Over an extended period, some heavy drinkers also develop deterioration of "the nervous system, liver damage, disorders of the heart ' and blood vessels and, in very severe cases, mental confusion and_,,loss of memory. In Ontario today, '300,000 people_of all ages drink alcohol every day in suf- ficient quantity to endanger. their health. Oh yes...and there's the Morning --- after the night before. The day after a' ---""bout of heavy drinking, the victim may no longer feel impaired, but the effects can still be measured scientifically. • Judgement and on-the-job per- formance can suffer, and often does. Most everyone has heard' about the SIGN e • "hair of the dog" .for hangovers. There are as many recipes for hangovers as there are for sure -fine aphrodisiacs but regrettably, , none. of4,them work. Things tike lining the stbmach with milk, drinking coffee, eating raw eggs may help the dairy industry; Brazil and the poultry producers, but. they do little to prevent or cure hangovers. Ample food in the stomach, either before or immediately after drinking, will help to slow down the rate of -ab- sorption of alcohol into the 'blood- stream, but the only proven way to eliminate a hangover is to drink in moderation. TEENAGE DRINKING Parents in and around Goderich are • wel I 'acquainted with teenage drinking problems. Any parents who believe their children are not experimenting with liquor or other intoxicants are either very lucky .or very dumb From time to time, people come into myA office to discuss problems of varying a y con- intensity involy inq .young people. Many, many want to talk about the growing numbers of teenagers whoare- not renot only drinking, but are encountering problems of controlling their drinking. The provincial government researchers have discovered what many people suspected: the over- whelming majority of young people who use alcohol started because their friends did. These youngsters - these non- conformist youthful citizens - give into the pressure of their group to "have a drink" because they didn't want to feel deft out. Whether or not they felt good. about it,' or whether or hot they wanted tp repeat the experience didn't matter. The pressure of their friends won out. And the provincial government found something else that is no sur- prise to most observant parents - once started, drinking can become a rule rather than an exception at youthful gatherings for teenagers of all ages, all intelligence; all backgrounds. But there are other reasons too why youthful drinking is becoming more and more of a problem. Boredom- is a prime fac tor...boredom for lack of things,t'o"do. Young people have more and more ,time on their hands...there'shours of time to spend after classes, after the part-time job, after homework, after household chores, after the hockey game. What's to do for teenagers who like their parents, are caught up in a busy, pressure -filled, hectic society? What kind of entertainment is: available? What deviation from regular school and work activities? What's to see? What's to do? Goderich parents need only ask their young people these questions. Some of the answers will be downright shocking. A good many movies. shown in the theatres today are pure and,plain trash. Most dances and other events are geared strictly to adults,. You can - 'only do so much walking and reading and listening. Too often, about the only thing for Goderich and area teenagers to do on a Saturday night is to drink themse.lyes"'into'a' state of some sort of satisfaction. And of course, many young people see their parents drinking from time to time, with no apparent ill effect. For parents .too entertain regu.iarly with a bottle of booze and conversation...or a 'bottle of booze and bridge...or a battle of booze and music...or a bottle of booze and bowling...or a.,bottle of booze 71 and food. Parents are even happy to see their children drinking in some. instances. What about you, your family and your friends? Have your drinkjng..pattern . changed in the past few year:? Are you dr ,eking more liquor, more wine or more beer? Are you *inking more often? Do you no longer confine your drinking to special occdtsions? And how's your health? -STAR 128 -YEAR -1-6, • THURSDAY, APRIL 1 7, 1975 SECOND SECTION ofmod�rn 11 • Many believe alcohol is safer than other drugs, maybe because .it is legal...and socially acceptable. That socially acceptable bit is the most irritating. Noone frowns or worries when the TV or movie hero splashes scotch over the rocks at his custom-made bar. In fact, there seems. to be an air of maturity and. sophistication that surrounds the enjoyment of a well-prepared social • drink. - COST -LY HABIT Who 'can. afford alcoholic beverages these. days? Virtually everyone. Alcohol is less expensive,, in relation to income, than it has ever- been before, according to the provincial govern- ment. And the old belief that people who • drink beer anal wine cannot become alcbholics is wrong...dead wrong. Many poorer drinkers can afford only beer and wine; but both can easily provide enough alcohol to produce dependency. • A government brochure rentit!ed "This round's Won -me" tells just how expensive drinking can be': It states: • "Consider a family of moderate -to- heavy drinkers. They frequently have a couple of •drinks before dinner to' unwind; beer or 'a bottle of wine with dinner; an after7,dinner drink or two; and nightcaps. • "They enjoy a brew - or two or three - after golf or skiing or,bowling. 'Drinks as part of business lunches:. They buy rounds for their friends. ' 'And , their parties and social gatherings have one thing in common - drinking. "How much do they spend , on alcohol? Likely they don't know. Because they've never stopped to °figure if` fatJt. We have. . "Chances are this family could be spending as much as $20 or $30 a week on alcoholic bev ages. That's $85 to $130 a month. Or tween $1,000 and $1,500 a year. Multip that yearly cost Ontario has become more 'civilized' in its drinking habits, by adopting 'European' drinking patterns. That is, drinking throughb'ut the day, drinking more wine, alta' drinking more often with meals Unfortunately, -this drinking pa(tern is • being superimposed over Canadian drinking habits, causing a dangerous 'stacking effect' of increased, continual and cumulative alcohol consumption. .!T • 'K1•�4A.4.4{4n.M-♦-1114.4.4 V�•1•'►•L411'V X4141.♦ • ♦ •1•►.{ 4 • • r by the average adult life expectancy of 50 Years, and it adds up to, $50,000 or $75,000. "No matter how you look at it, that's a lot of money. It could pair a Targe p'art of your weekly grocery bill, It could make a sizeable dint in your monthly rent or mortgage payments. It could help buy.you a new car every year or two. Or, if saved and invested wisely, it could' pay all the costs of university education for your children - with enough left over to give you. a sub- stantial additional income in retirement." SALESMANSHII? You know that familiar question ins, diningrooms and certain restaurants these days. "Can I get you something from the bar?" . One of the brochures put out by the government 'points-out--that--the waiter is "purposet assuming , Y g .you want drihks - before' with and after your meal". u that's . only one way the population is pressured into drinking. How.often ,do people say "ComeAn over for a drink" instead of "Come on over for a visit"? •. How often do.you take a few drinks to be sociable when you really don't particularly want them? How often do you influence the people 'you know to drink when they really might prefer not to? , Consider the . host or hostess who seems to think that parties„ aren't a success ,unless all the guests are en- ticed to drink. To them, it is being hospitable. They don't stop - to .think that they might be doing damage- to .their friends - especially if those friends have to drive home, Their hospitality could put some of their-, guests in' hospital. Or worse. Maybe hostesses should offer alternatives for that "one for the road". Like fruit -juices or soft drinks or tea or coffee. ' Here's ah idea. Why not set up a bar before your next party. Then when your guests arrive, tell them: "Help yourself when youwant something to drink." It might surprise you how much less they drink. And how much more they enjoy your hospitality. 41 ALTERNATIVES Speaking of alternatives, one of the most .effective posters put out by the government in this campaign is en- titled "Can You Get High On The Real Things?" It .,shows people walking, canoeing,' playing chess, playing Y� g music, high jumping, cycling, -water skiing, birdwatch.ing and just plain enjoying nature's beauty. One brochure points .out that tension, stress and pressure are "increasingly a part of our lives'. More and more people seem to be turning to alcohol to relieve them to unwind after a tough day. "We'd like people fo :consider the alternatives," the .brochure says. "Like playing sports or getting in- volved.in a physical fitness program. Spending more time on hobbies or family outings. Reading more, or going to the theatre or Movies. Getting more involved in community affairs or social issues. Or other healthy, creative pastimes that use your time ,more productively.' ' And,. what about those parties you attend where booze is the principal entertainment? Half tile, driver fatalities in this country involve alcohol. That means in (Vie out of every two highway death's, someone, somewhere, had been drinking too much. And ..drinking -driving offenses among ydung people are ?n- creaasing. . bM\ • "Try drinking a little differently at your next social gathering, the brochure suggests. "Using twice as much mix as usual, for instance. Or making every second drink a straight . ginger ale or soda or cola. Or limiting yourself to an average of one drink an hour. Or carefully measuring so that each of your drinks has' only one ounce of liquor in it. We think you might enjoy the party more that way. And that other people -might enjoy your,, corn- pany more. What do you think?" MIX -DRINKING WITH THINKING Over and over in the materials put out by. the Ontario government, you'll read something like this: _"Don't misunderstand. We're not aga'nst 'drinking. If people want to drink 's up to them. But we'd like people o 'consider the; alternatives.','- .. _._.. Or his: "Drinking is " an adult. pleasure, It's accepted in our society and it's enjoyable; providing . it's handled with intelligence and moderation. It can be part of your lifestyle if you wish. it shouldn't be all your life. To enjoy the pleasures of drinking is up to' you. A little self- discipline will make a good scotch, a fine wine and a cool"""beer well worth savouring." Or this: "We're not against drinking. If people want to drink it's up to them. But we think everyone should be aware of the health hazards 'involved in drinking, too much, too- often. There's .no dou't about it. People who drink. moderately, on special occasions only, or not at all, are healthier people," Good sound advice, "i'd say, for anyone, anytime, anywhere. WHAT'S BEING DONE Radio ' and television commercials contain messages aimed at,increasing, knowledge, awareness. and un- derstanding otthe effects of alcohol, as well as the role of the individual ana of society in promoting healthy drinking patterns. Three film's were prepared as part of the ;program. The first, entitled "Drinking Occasions,." focuses in an entertaining and engaging way on the individual's ability to alter the trend toward increased per. capita con- sumption -bf alcohol. Second production' is titled. "Here's Looking at You."' Those doing the looking are the teenage sons of two quite different suburban families. What they see relates to the objective of the 'film: increasing people's awareness of ' the extent 4o which ' outside forces can influence an in- .:dividua-rs drinking habits The third production, entitled' "This Year's Hero," shows the immediate and long-term effects of alcohol misused, and how the individual can alter the trend. Development of the program in- cluded pre-test i ng. • of. all ,components, with . technical advice ,from the Addiction Research Foun- dation acrd the Ministry of Education. The first phase of what Is to be an ongoing program will be introduced in selected communities around ,the province later this month. Hats off to' the provincial govern- ment for this fine . educational program. It is to be hoped all of us respond positively. Let's mix thi-rikipg withEour. drinking. It -really is worth a lot more to drink a bit less. The problem with drinking is simply too much drinking. When. chinking ceasesta-be a stn'ial.grace it becomes a social disease. In our society this can happen ,very easily. 41. Ar