craigdailypress.com

By JOSH NICHOLS

Daily Press writer

With the end of the year only days away, people are making plans to toast in 2002.

Grand Futures Prevention Coalition along with the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) are warning people not to tip back too many drinks on New Year's Eve. And, if partiers have a few too many, to have a designated driver to get them safely home.

Twice as many people die in alcohol related crashes on New Year's Eve every year than on other nights of the year, according to NIAAA.

Cindy Biskup, project manager at Grand Futures Prevention Coalition, said although no fatalities have occurred in recent years due to drunk driving in Moffat County, people in Craig and Moffat County still need to be careful.

"You can't judge drinking and driving in an area by whether someone dies," she said. "We have a lot of drinking and driving here, but there's not as much traffic as in the big city. People in rural areas sometimes get complacent."

Grand Futures encourages people not to drink on New Year's Eve, and provides many festive alternatives.

The coalition offers non-alcoholic drink recipes for people who want to host non-alcoholic parties, but Biskup said this is just one option.

"We at Grand Futures aren't in the business to tell people they shouldn't drink," she said. "But people over 21 should drink responsibly."

And if people don't plan on drinking responsibly, they should have a designated driver, she said.

"Designate a driver before you start drinking and have a safe holiday celebration," she said. "Just be aware that you need a designated driver."

The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism listed several myths in regard to sobering up and curing hangovers, which have been proven false.

They include:

Drink coffee. Caffeine will sober you up myth.

Take aspirin and drink a lot of water at bedtime to prevent a hangover myth.

Eat before going to sleep to soak up the alcohol and prevent nausea myth.

A morning drink will help cure a hangover myth.