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Alcohol Awareness
By Kevin Quint, Executive Director
April is "Alcohol Awareness Month." Because of that, I would like to share a few thoughts about alcohol and its effects on the human body.
Alcohol is an interesting substance. In small amounts, alcohol can relax and provide the drinker with a feeling of well being. You know, that warm feeling inside. Not bad. But in larger amounts alcohol can have other effects.
The first organ to be affected by alcohol is your brain. In fact, long before a person feels or looks intoxicated, the higher functions of the brain are becoming impaired. In the first few drinks the imbiber's judgment, short term memory, and critical thinking skills begin to be impaired. It's subtle but the changes are happening.
After a few more drinks, the fine motor skills are affected. These are items like threading a needle, chopping vegetables for a salad, using a computer keyboard, or adjusting a radio dial. Just a few more drinks and the gross motor skills become impaired: walking, running, or driving.
Finally, with enough alcohol, the user's capacity for breathing, heartbeat, and/or brain function can shut down. This would be in the case of extremely heavy drinking in a short period of time such as drinking a fifth of bourbon in a few minutes. The body cannot take that much alcohol at one time without something going wrong. Remember, alcohol is a central nervous system depressant.
Since this is Alcohol Awareness Month, we at JTNN want those of you who are 21 or older to be aware of what alcohol can do if not used properly. We also hold the position that youth under 21 shouldn't drink at all because it is illegal but more than that, studies have shown that if we can hold youth off from drinking, using tobacco, and using any illicit drugs, then almost none of those youth will become addicted later in life.
If you'd like more information about alcohol and its effects on the body, please contact us at 775-324-7557.
Building Partnerships for A Healthy Community
JTNN works all year round to address the problem of underage drinking. Each month a group in Washoe County called the Environmental Strategies Group meets to talk about how to prevent underage drinking in our community. This group consists of law enforcement, educators, parents, prevention people, bar and retail operators, and more. Currently here are some of the projects that we are working on:
- Coordinating underage alcohol sales compliance checks with local law enforcement.
- Establishing a program with local bars and clubs called "Real Bar" in which establishments agree to work with us on training their staff and generally promoting the ethic of not admitting or serving underage minors.
- Working with UNR Student Services and the UNR Athletic Department to develop and implement alcohol use policies at UNR home football games.
- Collaborating with UNR Student Services to identify and help students who may have the beginning of a drinking problem.
- Partnering with Quest Counseling and Consulting to train retail clerks and bar personnel in how not to sell or serve alcohol to underage persons.
These are just a few of the projects we are involved in to prevent underage drinking. If you'd like more information please contact us at www.jtnn.org
My Anti-Drug Benefit Dinner
Help us raise funds for substance abuse prevention by eating at Red Robin in Reno on Thursday, May 7th. Ten percent of the cost of your dinner will be donated to JTNN's annual My Anti-Drug Mural project that teaches youth how to identify those things they choose to do instead of using drugs. Hundreds of youth participated in this year's project by creating individual pieces of art. You'll be the judge and select your favorites on May 7th. The top rated pieces of art will be on display at the Artist Co-Op of Reno Gallery during the month of June.
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