What is the prevalence of alcohol use?
The most widely abused drug in the world, alcohol remains the No. 1 substance abused by teenagers and by all athletes, from junior high school through the professional ranks. It has been conservatively estimated that the average American college student drinks more than 34 gallons of alcohol yearly, predominantly beer. Alcohol is the most commonly used drug by college athletes, with about 80 percent having reported use in the past 12 months, down somewhat from 88 percent in previous years. In 1993, 40 percent of the 5,905 traffic fatalities of people between 15 and 20 years of age were alcohol-related.
