A new NIU-endorsed Web site that gives students information about alcohol’s effects now is available. The site is intended for the general public as well as for students who have been sanctioned by NIU for alcohol-related offenses.

Students will remain anonymous as they peruse the interactive site for information relevant to themselves and the drinking culture as a whole.

Sandra Belman, coordinator of Health Enhancement Services, said the Web site will provide only a snapshot of student behavior, and no information can be used to identify individual visitors.

When students visit the Web site, www.mystudentbody.com, they should enter “niuhuskie” under the school code after navigating to the new user portion of the site.

“Most students drink moderately, but the perception seems to be that students drink a lot,” said Steve Lux, health educator with Health Enhancement Services. “If you go to a party, who are you going to remember? The guy that went, had a few drinks and went home, or the someone that got drunk and tripped or made a fool of themselves?”

Lux said the problem is not with the alcohol, but with students’ relationship with it.

The Web site informs students of alcohol use in general as well as on an individualized level.

While the site helps shape perception of alcohol and its use among students, University Health Services will be able to analyze the data to better assess student drinking activity as a whole.

“We’ll be able to look at data and see if there is a high level of any risky behavior, and form a program to deal with it,” Belman said. “Later on, we’ll be able to look to see if that program has had any impact.”

Some students will be required by the judicial office to complete courses on the site as a sanction for an alcohol-related offense.

“The Web site is a preventative measure, more for the general population,” said Allison Glore, psychologist with the Counseling and Student Development Center.

Glore also said that the information on the site could be especially helpful to new drinkers, such as freshmen who have not yet developed a personal understanding of alcohol.

Available on the site is data on student drinking, information on exactly what alcohol does, and several interactive calculators, such as the blood alcohol content calculator.