Alcohol, drugs and gambling safety

Some students will choose to drink alcohol or take drugs when coming to university. For some people, this may be the first time taking substances. There are many myths surrounding alcohol and drug use and we’ve put together a page of information to help ensure you are keeping yourself safe.

Alcohol

It’s useful to know the number of units of alcohol you are drinking. The nationally recommended advice is that men and women should drink no more than 14 units of alcohol a week. That’s equivalent to:

six pints of average strength beer, or
10 small glasses of low strength wine.

Everyone has different tolerances to alcohol usage and understanding your units can help you understand your tolerance. You can download a free app from Drink Aware to track your alcohol consumption, calculate units and set your own goals to moderate your drinking. You can also try the free Alcohol Change unit tracker

Tips for staying safe with your drinks:

Eat before you drink. Having a proper meal before you drink will line your stomach and will help ‘soak up’ some of the alcohol.
Drink water. Alcohol makes you dehydrated, which is part of the reason you get a hangover, so drink water before, during and after you drink alcohol.
Try switching to a lower alcohol drink. This will mean you’ll be more able to handle your drink. Many spirits, beer, and wine have zero or low-alcohol versions.
Pace yourself. Alternating between alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks will give your body more time to process the alcohol and help you save money!

Alcohol and Respect

It’s easy to get into buying rounds of drinks or feel pressured to drink. Remember, lots of students choose not to drink alcohol for many reasons. It’s never okay to pressure someone to drink alcohol if they don’t want to. It’s also okay to choose not to drink or to choose not to drink every time you go out.

Myth Busting

Myth: Everyone at university drinks and gets drunk all the time.

Reality: Over a quarter of students do not drink any alcohol and a third of students drink less than once a week. Only a small number of students report drinking heavily all week. SOS Drug Impact Survey

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Myth: Mixing alcohol and certain drugs (like cocaine) cancels out their effects.

Reality: Combining substances, like cocaine and alcohol causes the body to produce cocaethylene, a chemical impact that is significantly stronger and more toxic than each substance individually. It can heavily increase your risk of sudden heart failure.

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Myth: If two people are incapacitated and they have sex, neither person is responsible for ensuring sexual consent is present.

Reality: The person who is initiating sexual activity is responsible for ensuring they have gotten consent. Being drunk does not negate the responsibility to get consent. Healthy Relationships Guidance

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Myth: Putting an extra shot in my friend’s drink is just a bit of fun.

Reality: Putting extra alcohol in your friend’s drink without their knowledge is an example of spiking and can have serious consequences for you and your friend. It is never okay to give someone alcohol without their knowledge.

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Myth: If a person has passed out due to drinking, they just need to ‘sleep it off’.

Reality: A person could be suffering from fatal alcohol poisoning and it could be serious. Call 999 immediately if you are concerned that someone might have alcohol poisoning. NHS Website

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Myth: Alcohol makes me feel better when I’m stressed and improves my mental health.
Reality: While we may gain some short-term relief after a drink or two, our drinking habits can take their toll on our wellbeing. From fuelling hangxiety (a term used to describe the experience of feeling anxious the day after drinking), reducing our sleep quality and generally leaving us feeling ‘off’ the next day, to more long-term impacts like depression or relationship challenges, alcohol is not a sustainable means of coping with life’s ups and downs. Alcoholchange.org.uk

Drugs

University can be an exciting time, but it can also bring new pressures, experiences and choices. Some students may encounter drugs in social settings or be offered substances by friends or acquaintances. Understanding the risks associated with drug use can help you make informed decisions and protect your health, wellbeing and academic success.

Drugs can affect people in different ways. While some drugs may produce short-term feelings of relaxation, confidence or euphoria, they can also cause unwanted effects including anxiety, panic, impaired judgement, memory problems and difficulties concentrating. Regular or heavy drug use may increase the risk of dependency and can negatively impact relationships, finances and academic performance.

The strength and contents of drugs can vary significantly, meaning people probably will not know exactly what they are taking. The following advice can help keep you safe, although it is important to remember that there is no completely risk-free way to take illegal drugs:

Avoid mixing substances, including mixing drugs and alcohol. Mixing substances increases risk of overdose.
Go low and slow. Use a smaller amount first to test the effects. You can’t tell how strong something is by what it looks like.
Try not to use any drugs alone, so someone is there to get help if things go wrong.
If someone you are with falls ill after using drugs, don’t leave them. Call 999 and stay with them until the ambulance arrives.

Release have further harm reduction information on their website.

Myth Busting

Myth: Drugs are only a problem if you're dependent.

Reality: You don’t have to be dependent for it to be a problem in your life. Casual use is becoming more common - and more dangerous with the rise of drug contamination.

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Myth: Occasional drug use is harmless.

Reality: Casual use can lead to long-term issues like anxiety, dependence, and health problems. You don’t have to use every day to need support.

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Myth: Legal or “natural” substances (like cannabis) are safe.

Reality: Just because a substance is sold legally or marketed as a “legal high” does not mean it is harmless. Many of these substances carry unknown or serious health risks

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Myth: You can't overdose on cocaine.

Reality: You absolutely can. It's dangerous to take too much cocaine, and it can be fatal.

CGL The Place logo

Alcohol & Drugs Support and Help

Change Grow Live The Place, offer a range of specialised support for young people up to age 25 living in Nottingham city, including:

Structured support and up-to-date, in-depth harm reduction advice around drugs and alcohol.
Confidential, specialist support for young people affected by someone else's substance use.

People who engage with the service can expect:

A free, confidential & welcoming service
Access to professional advice and information
Personalized, person-centred support tailored to individual needs
Opportunities to build knowledge around substances
Guidance on managing the impact of substance use on themselves or their family

Check out our Drugs and Alcohol podcast to learn more about The Place.

The Place Daily Drop-In

Monday – Friday 3:00 – 5:00PM for people aged under 25 years old.

Location:

2 Russell Place
NG1 5HJ

During this time, you can access:

Advice and information about alcohol and drug use
Harm reduction support
Brief interventions
Referrals into service where appropriate
Pro-active signposting to other services
C-Card registration and condom provision
Support for children and young people affected by someone else's substance use

CGL Nottinghamshire can provide support for students livening in Nottinghamshire.

Talk to FRANK: You can use this website to find out more about drugs and their effects, including legal highs. You can also use this page to locate a support service near you. If you are worried about a friend, you can call 0300 123 6600 anytime for confidential advice or submit a support and wellbeing form to NTU.

Gambling

Anyone can be affected by gambling. Opportunities to gamble are all around us, and gambling is designed to keep us spending and to bring us back to gambling even when we don’t want to. Millions of people around the country are affected by gambling harm.

According to an YGAM survey, in 2022 71% of students gambled in some way that year, and 47% of those students had gambled to make money. Gambling can easily become addictive. Please remember the gambling system is set for the house to win, there is no such thing as luck in gambling.

What does it mean to have a gambling problem:

you are spending more money than expected,
you are constantly thinking about gambling,
gambling is taking up a big chunk of your time.

If you feel that gambling is starting to control your life please reach out for help and support.

Support and Help

NHS Help for problems with gambling

Nottingham Time Out Gambling Project

Ask Lion - Gambling Support

Healthy NTU Gambling podcast

Money problems and mental wellbeing

There is a clear link between mental health and money problems. University financial worries can be a cause for feeling stressed, anxious and overwhelmed; all of which can have an impact of your studies. NTU have a dedicated Student Money Team who can provide advice, help and support.

Money Helper have created a guide on how to look after yourself and your money.

You can also access the mental health and money toolkit which has interactive activities to help you.