If a woman binge drinks, then she must be immoral

For men, drinking is bad for health. For women, drinking is bad for their character. Photo: Shutterstock/IndiaPicture

Our society has some very weird biases dictating the lives of men and women. Remember the movie Pink, where Amitabh Bachchan quotes that alcohol is just a health hazard for men, but a character certificate for women? Unfortunately, that dialogue finds basis in reality. In real life, women get judged for binge-drinking, and rather harshly at that. And we've got the stats to prove it.  

According to a study conducted at Glasgow University, UK, women who drink are portrayed as immoral, helpless, and a burden to men by the media. And it starts with what we watch on the screen. Take the popular sitcom How I met Your Mother. In the series, Barney Stinson-whom we all love to hate-often pulls not-so-funny gags on drunken women.

So, it would be safe to say that the researchers conducting the study know what they are talking about. "Representations of binge drinking has revealed there is a disproportionate focus on women's relationship with alcohol, despite men's alcohol-related health issues still greatly exceeding women's", states the study.

Also read: From weight loss to strong bones: Alcohol is actually good for your health

The research published in BMJ Open says that articles taking about the issue typically depict women as less able than men to maintain socially acceptable behaviour during single-episodic drinking.

"Women's outfits are also a focus of the articles, which often honed in on degrees of nudity and questioned the appropriateness of their chosen attire", it says.

While reporting on binge-drinking in women, media usually has a moralistic and judgemental tone, which otherwise is absent while reporting the same for men.

"Media coverage of women's binge drinking isn't just about health or public disorder; it also performs a moralizing, paternalistic role, reflecting broader social expectations about women's public behaviour", said Chris Patterson, public health sciences unit, University of Glasgow. And he is not alone. Other academicians agree too.

"In the UK, men still drink more than women and are more likely to die from alcohol-related causes. However, the media's disproportionate focus on women's drinking, including the headlines and images used, may lead the public to think that it is primarily young females who are the problem drinkers", said Dr Carol Emslie from the School of Health and Life Sciences at Glasgow Caledonian University.

Well, we are not really surprised here.