An article in the news today highlights the increasing number of women that are being arrested for drunk driving. The article references an FBI study that shows the number of women arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs was 28.8 percent higher in 2007 than it was in 1998, while the number of men arrested was 7.5 percent lower (the study covers about 56 percent of the country). The article also mentions that the U.S. Department of Transportation’s drunk driving enforcement efforts this year will focus on women.

In 2006, The Foundation for Advancing Alcohol Responsibility launched Girl Talk: Choices and Consequences of Underage Drinking, an initiative that encourages mothers and daughters to engage in an ongoing dialogue about the dangers of underage drinking and the specific risks facing teenage girls. The program recently partnered with Girl Talk: Desire to Inspire, a peer-to-peer mentoring program that offers positive weekly meetings and community service projects for middle school girls.

The data is clear that while men represent the majority of drunk driving arrests, more and more evidence suggests that the gap between men and women is narrowing. With programs such as Girl Talk: Desire to Inspire, The Foundation for Advancing Alcohol Responsibility is working to educate young women about the unique risks they face from underage drinking with the goal of helping them learn how to make responsible decisions that will serve them well, both, now and later in life.