(BLACK PR WIRE/FAMU-TALLAHASSEE) "" Most people who drink socially do it for just that reason, to socialize! They usually don't drink on a regular basis and wait until a special event to hit it hard and go all out. It is usually a birthday party or their once-a-month trip to the bar that becomes the excuse to guzzle as much alcohol as their body can handle, since they "don't do it often."

Gregory Hall, a student at Florida State University, claims he only drinks when he goes out with his friends. "I never drink when I'm just home on a regular day," Hall said. "But about twice every month when I go out with my boys, we indulge in a night full of drinks while we enjoy each other's company."

According to the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, binge drinking is a common pattern of excessive alcohol use, typically when one consumes five or more drinks on one occasion.

Erin Marshall, 28, says that she only drinks when she goes to dinner parties. "Whenever I go out to a dinner party with a group of my friends, I let the celebratory mood get the best of me," said Marshall. "I tend to have a cocktail or two, or five! But only at dinner parties."

The Centers for Disease Control said that about 75 percent of the alcohol consumed by adults in the U.S. is in the form of binge drinking. Unlike chronic drinking, binge drinking is less addictive but can still be problematic. According to the CDC, health problems can include alcohol poisoning, liver disease, sexual dysfunction and even neurological damage if binge drinking becomes a regular practice.