Binging: a prevalence study in Belarusian universities

Background The extent of binging (≥5 drinks/session) largely contributes to the burden associated with alcohol use in most countries [1-3]. Binging among undergraduate students in Belarus is a major public health problem, leading to violence, injury, unsafe sexual activities, as well as conduct problems. The high level of alcohol-related problems in this country is caused by combination of factors like high level of alcohol consumption per capita and hazardous drinking patterns. High level of alcoholism in the society calls for the necessity of carrying out preventive measures aimed at early diagnosis of alcohol related problems, with subsequent consultation and therapeutic intervention [2,4]. In particular, this concerns the students’ population, inasmuch as recent epidemiological data show high level of alcohol related problems among students [1-4]. This study was aimed at identifying the prevalence of binging and its associated harm among undergraduate students in Minsk, Belarus.