A dangerous college activity has made its way to high school students and campuses. Adolescent Counseling Services (ACS) has seen a new trend in our programs: teens participating in a Beer Mile. What is a beer mile? According to the “official” Beer Mile website, “The most common format of the beer mile requires a single participant to drink a full-sized beer, run a quarter mile, then repeat the process three times. This results in the consumption of four beers and the running of four quarter miles (hence the beer mile). The entire process is timed. The total time is often used as a measuring stick of competency.”
The website, which provides Beer Mile variations and recipes, can be intriguing for today’s youth. This type of extreme behavior is popular with college students, athletes, and adults. The exploits of individuals participating in Beer Miles, are often encouraged with personal websites, YouTube videos and Facebook pages.
Although these sites make fodder of the humiliating reactions that follow drinking four 12oz beers while running a mile, like, vomiting and falling down, drinking alcohol while running is not safe. Alcohol is a diuretic and can cause dehydration, which affects the functions of the muscles, liver, and heart. As well, alcohol sedates the inhibitory nerves, which results in a lack of motor skills and coordination. This makes the possibility of unintentional bodily harm more likely.
As schools let out for the Holiday Break and adolescents are left with time on their hands, this type of activity may seem appealing. We encourage parents to keep an eye out for this website in your family’s internet history and to keep an ear out for any mention of this activity taking place.