Alcohol: Now more lethal than AIDS, TB and violence combined

If you know someone who is known as a drinker, it may be time for a little talk.

According to a publication released earlier today, the World Health Organization (WHO) claims that alcohol is responsible for approximately 2.5 million deaths each year, which is a higher total than—you guessed it—AIDS, tuberculosis and violence combined.

The WHO also states that alcohol is the world's leading fatal risk factor in males 15-59, and has tried for the past year to limit consumption through increasing taxes and restricting marketing.

Though their efforts are well-meaning, you can't help but feel that the WHO is fighting a lost cause, especially after being exposed to the environment of a place like Duke. The openness of the campus to drinking may even astound some visitors, as freshmen are basically introduced to drinking at the very onset of their college careers.

While such an atmosphere might be conducive to discovering one's limits, it does carry a lot of the risk that the WHO warns us about. After all, who hasn't seen a fellow student drink one too many?

The question Duke students—and the world in general, it seems—face is whether or not they can protect themselves from a fatal mistake that strikes 4% of the population each year.