High on teen spirit

Malay Mail: A STUDY on teenage drinking habits in February 2003, revealed that out of 635 respondents, a shocking 45.7 per cent confessed to consuming alcohol.
Another 16.2 per cent admitted to consuming alcohol 30 days before the survey.
The respondents were Upper Six students, both male and female, from 12 Government secondary schools, located in four districts in Selangor.
The study, by Dr Hejar Abdul Rahman — a lecturer at Universiti Putra Malaysia’s Department of Community Health of the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, also revealed that the respondents perceived drinking as one of the ways to relax, have fun and unwind.
Hejar said it was also revealed that they did not know that alcohol is addictive.
"They were also unaware that drinking for fun could lead to addiction," she said.
Hejar said women are more susceptible to the effects of alcohol.
"So it’s not surprising to see young girls get drunk easily," she said, adding they also throw up easily.
She explained that women are easily affected because of their lower average body weight, higher average body fat and other endocrine and biochemical differences.
"Alcohol becomes more concentrated and stays longer in a woman’s body, that’s why women get drunk faster than a man on the same amount of alcohol.
"Women also feel the effects of alcohol far longer than men," says Dr Hejar.