The New Year is just around the corner, and in preparation for it people have been busy planning where they will be, who they'll spend their time with, and what will they be drinking. With the answer commonly being in a public place, with friends, and beer, welcoming the New Year might not go over so well, especially when heavy drinking is involved.

It is a common fact that the number of alcohol-related accidents rises all over the world when the New Year comes along; this is especially the case when it comes to minors. This is because of the prevalence of the partying mood and the herd mentality that can push a person into drink more than usual.

According to a study in the United States, around 1,980 emergency room visits on New Year's Day in 2009 involved underage drinking, and 40 per cent of traffic fatalities during these holidays involved a driver under the influence of alcohol, compared to 28 per cent for the rest of the December, CNN reported.

However, drinking and driving doesn't only harm the driver, it can also kill others with drunk walking running rampant during this time of the holidays. With a person's blood alcohol levels being over the top, drunk drivers don't have the capacity to judge what it is they should do, this goes hand in hand with drunk pedestrians who may just get caught in the wrong place, at the wrong time simply because they are under the influence.

But the dangers of too much or binge drinking doesn't only lie on the streets, it can also happen indoors. Alcohol poisoning is no stranger to those who party too hard during the holidays, causing those who drink too much: confusion, vomiting, seizures, breathing irregularities, the risk of passing out, and even death.

Speaking of passing out, being drunk gives rise to unsafe sex. Being drunk impairs one's ability to properly make decisions, and with this the odds of participating in unprotected sex increases - getting an unwanted pregnancy or a sexually transmitted disease is not the right way to start of the New Year, right?

And even when a person who drank too much does get home safely and with no incident, a night of binge drinking can result in a terrible hangover which can last up to 24 hours.

So what can people who drink do to avoid drinking way too much in celebrating the New Year? According to Western Washington University, moderation is the key.

And in order to ensure that one does drink moderately, it is important to plan ahead and to set a reasonable limit; to keep track of how many glasses or bottles have been downed; to eat before drinking; to slow down; and to follow the general guideline when it comes to moderate drinking which is one drink per hour, with a maximum of three.