Urban Nightlife and Alcohol Use

Alcohol consumption has always been a part of urban nightlife and it is said to be one of the key elements of any party. At these urban nightclubs and social meeting areas people spend large amounts of money just to acquire ‘fancy’ or ‘exquisite’ drinks. Alcohol consumption without moderation can lead to many unwanted effects and outcomes that are ever so often seen in the local news. So the question may arise as to what encourages this type of social behaviour which is seen as a norm or ‘cool’ in urban spaces? A study conducted by the World Health Organization (WHO 2004) found that students’ first exposure to drinking alcohol in Trinidad and Tobago was by family members in childhood or experimentation later. Transitions from primary to secondary schools and from junior to senior schools were associated with increased alcohol use. Ethnic reversals of substance abuse among high school students were observed by a high use of alcohol among Indo-Trinidadian and low use among Afro-Trinidadian students. The use of alcohol by students was also positively correlated to its use by fathers. With some understanding as to the causes of this type of social norm, what then are some of the implications that surround it? Are they positive or negative and if so which one outweighs the other? From this type of topic it is most easy to identify the negative impacts of excessive alcohol use in urban areas and also the wider community; some of which may include Vehicular accidents caused by drinking and driving under the influence of alcohol, violence, unwanted pregnancies, crime, and spread of diseases such as HIV / AIDS and also improper social conduct. 

Too many people are being killed on the country's roads. And with the recent social phenomenon of women drinking as much as men, the number of deaths from road accidents has increased. It is a fact that irresponsible driving is intricately linked to alcohol consumption and this consumption becomes more pervasive and excessive during the after dark hours when people are often returning from parties at nightclubs and ‘fetes’ which are national pastimes that involve the substantial consumption of alcoholic beverages. Unwanted pregnancies and spread of diseases such as HIV is also another consequence faced by many people as a result of excessive alcohol consumption. Similar to this is the instance of improper social conduct and lawlessness that is also caused by excessive alcohol consumption by many people intoxicated by alcohol in urban areas more so at night.

References:

"WHO Global Status Report on Alcohol 2004 1 ." © World Health Organization 2004 .                  www.who.int/substance_abuse/publications/en/trinidad_tobago.pdf (accessed January   23, 2013).

Read more:

http://www.trinidadexpress.com/news/The_cultural__challenge_of_drinking_and_driving-135808243.html

http://www.trinidadexpress.com/news/ROAD_CARNAGE-159667815.html

http://www.trinidadexpress.com/news/minister_held-167505895.html