Coimbatore: Parents of Ram (name changed), student of a reputed engineering college in the city, were shocked when the college informed them that their son is barred from attending third year classes as he had not appeared for the second year exams. He also had less than 40% attendance. While Ram refused to give an answer when his parents confronted him, his friends revealed that the youngster used to bunk classes frequently as he was addicted to alcohol and even used to drink heavily all day.
Ram’s parents rushed him to a de-addiction centre in the city, where a psychiatrist confirmed their worst fears. Their son is an alcohol addict.
On the International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking (June 26), psychiatrists say the number of alcohol addicts under the age of 21 seeking treatment has doubled in the last decade. “An alcohol addict can be classified as a person consuming alcohol two to four times a week and anywhere between 180ml to 350ml every time,” said Dr K Selvaraj, who founded Vazhikatti Mental Health Centre and Research Institute in 2002. “We further classify them based on how the addiction impacts their lives like affecting jobs, health, studies and businesses.”
Two factors that create alcohol addiction at a young age are exposure to the substance during teenage and underlying co-morbid psychological conditions like depression, anxiety, stress disorders and complexes, experts said. “Students get addicted to alcohol if they get introduced to it when they are 15 or 16 years old, because their bodies and brains are too young to handle its impact and they are not mature enough to place limits on themselves,” said Dr Selvakumar Parthiban of Saaral Deaddiction and Psychiatric Centre.
“Another common thread is that they suffer from psychological issues like depression, complex, stress disorders or anxiety due to studies, peer pressure or family issues. So alcohol becomes their reprieve. Then it escalates to not being able to concentrate on studies or even sit in a class without alcohol in their blood,” he told TOI.
The easy availability of alcohol and the unmonitored freedom youngsters enjoy are also worsening the situation. “Everyone, including students, pass by at least one TASMAC liquor outlet on the way home from school, college, tuition or work. So, alcohol is easily available. They also enjoy more freedom, get more pocket money and access more information compared to the past,” Dr Parthiban said. “ So, school students start behaving like college students. They have more opportunities to experiment,” he said.
It is critical for parents to have a healthy relationship with their children and discuss issues openly to prevent addiction to intoxicating substances, experts said. “Parents should discuss issues openly with their children to detect any underlying psychological problems like stress, anxiety or depression and prevent it from becoming a problem,” said Dr Selvaraj.
“They should also educate their children on alcohol and drugs, how they are offered, how they will affect their health and brains and how they could react if they are offered to them. They can also set limits,” he said.
The discussion should take place when children are in class five or six, the doctors said.