Sober November coming for alcohol-loving Hungarians!

As reported by Femina, Sober November will take place once again in Hungary this year, with a focus on targeting high school and university students.

Year on year, Hungary ranks amongst the ten worst-performing nations in the world in terms of alcohol consumption. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), the average Hungarian aged 15 and older drinks over 1 litre a month.

Research has shown the detrimental effects of alcohol; from ruining sleep patterns to increasing the risk of cancer, it is important to monitor alcohol intake.

Despite being aware of the consequences, 30% of the country’s population drinks alcohol on a weekly basis. Scientists have identified 14 units of alcohol as the weekly limit. Exceeding this can lead to serious health issues.

Non-profit Kék Pont are organising sober November for the fourth consecutive year, which focuses on university drinking this month. The campaign hopes to engage as many young people as they can reach.

There are 202,000 students in Hungarian education, of which 3.9% admitted being drunk regularly. Statistics also show that students aged between 15 and 29 are more likely to drink than people in the same age category who are not in education.

Between 2000 and 2016, young people’s alcohol intake has slightly increased. All the while, fewer people are abstaining from alcohol consumption. This is all contrary to the trends observed in the USA and Western Europe, where people are drinking less and less alcohol.

With their sober November campaign, Kék Pont aim to help people to moderate their alcohol consumption and raise awareness of the health problems that excessive drinking can cause.

In July, we reported that the number of people addicted to alcohol had reached 800,000. We also looked at the history of the iconic pálinka.

Source: femina.hu