More than third of Oz university students drink to harmful levels

Sydney, September 20 (ANI): A new study has found that more than a third of university students consume harmful levels of alcohol which could even lead to permanent brain damage.

According to a study published in New Scientist journal, tertiary students drank more heavily than their non-student peers yet were often unaware their drinking was risky.

Perth's Curtin University's 7237 students aged 17 to 24 were surveyed to find that 34 per cent of them were in the "hazardous/harmful" range of alcohol intake.

According to researcher Kypros Kypri, it is the 18- and 19-year-olds who are the heaviest drinkers and the "main target" for the alcohol industry.

"There is a hell of a lot of promotion in and around many universities," the Sydney Morning Herald quoted him as saying.

He brought to focus the point that most people imagine others drink more than them.

He said. "People think other people are drinking more, taking more drugs, having more sex.

" It's possible that that sort of cognitive bias is making people drink more heavily. All first-year students should be encouraged to check their drinking."

The study put to use an interactive website which screened information on how to get help for alcohol abuse. (ANI)