Groggy nation wakes to huge New Year hangover
IN MUCH of the world, a new year means a fresh start – a time for resolutions, gym memberships, and promises to be more productive. In Russia, it means two weeks of heavy drinking.
The country is just starting to emerge from its latest binge, which began on New Year’s Eve and ended, unofficially, with a second New Year celebration on Monday.
But medical officials warn that full recovery may be a long time coming. ‘‘Long holidays are, in any event, bad,’’ Yevgeny Bryun, Russia’s top medical drug official, said last week. ‘‘ Long- term abuse of any alcohol is always bad – it has chronic toxic impacts, the effects of which can last a month.’’
Russia reopened for business on January 9 after its extended New Year holiday, during which life all but comes to a standstill. Sharemarkets shut, and no newspapers are printed. Many extend festivities until January 13, when Russia celebrates the new year according to the old Julian calendar.
Economists estimate that Russia’s GDP misses out on 1 trillion roubles ($45.17 billion) as a result of the extended holiday, according to RIA-Novosti, a state-run news agency.
But it’s a time Russians hold dear. Many ‘‘dive into a zapoi’’, a ubiquitous Russian term for binge drinking.
One expert estimated that if all the bottles of alcohol Russians drank over the holiday were lined up along the equator, they would wrap around the world 17 times.
Vadim Dobroz, head of Russia’s Research Centre on the Federal and Regional Alcohol Market, said the average Russian spent 12,000 roubles ($558) on alcohol over the holiday.
Norma, a medical research network, went further, estimating that Russians, with a total population of 142 million, drank more than 1.5 billion litres of alcohol over the holiday, including 100 million bottles of beer, 100 million bottles of champagne and 250 million bottles of vodka. Add to that 80 million bottles of wine, 10 million bottles of cognac and 1.5 million bottles of other spirits, and the total sum is dizzying.
Russian newspapers and websites are filled with advice to the millions of Russians attempting to re- enter sobriety. ‘‘ The holidays are just holidays for regular people, but for doctors, especially drug doctors, they are hard- working days,’’ begins an article on MedPortal, a Russian health network.
‘‘ The real fun begins three to four days after the holiday ends. Citizens, who have abused alcohol for at least 10 days, suddenly remember that they need to go to work.’’