THUNDER BAY – Community partners want to start conversations about drinking.
The Thunder Bay District Health Unit and the Thunder Bay Drug Strategy are teaming up to coordinate a series of community discussions around alcohol use during the month of November.
The goal is to develop local initiatives to educate about the harms of alcohol and reduce the rate of excessive drinking in the district.
According to national statistics, nearly 80 per cent of adults report consuming alcohol on a regular basis while 20 per cent overuse on a regular basis.
It is also believed that about 25 per cent of students in Grades 7-12 binge drink at least one a month.
In 2010 alcohol was linked to between 1,000 to 3,000 cancer cases in Ontario and 25 per cent of road fatalities were as a result of impaired driving.
The first meeting will be a facilitated discussion on Nov. 19 at the Oliver Road Community Centre. Drop-in style talks will be held later in the month at the Sports Dome, Intercity Shopping Centre and Victoriaville Mall.
Information gathered during the discussions will be compiled and presented as a report to the drug strategy committee in early 2015.
