Most people would concur that alcohol should not be given to teenagers. Despite the fact that we concede to this essential truth, underage drinking is still a noteworthy issue in our nation. Since adolescents need development and information with regards to liquor, they put themselves, as well as others in incredible danger when they decide to consume. Regardless of the risk, there are individuals out there who believe that the drinking age should be lowered.
Underage drinking is becoming a very problematic issue. Teens are at risk for many health issues,when it comes to their irresponsible drinking. Teenagers today believe drinking is cool and the best way to enjoy a night. Nonetheless do teens know the problems that alcohol can cause. Alcohol consumption for girls leads to unwanted, unplanned, and unprotected sex and pregnancy. In general underage drinking could either ruin a teens life or cause life threatening injuries.
More than five thousand people under age twenty-one die from alcohol-related injuries every year. The number of teens drinking has only increased and is causing problems. Many underage drinkers are facing physical and mental health problems. Underage drinking is bad for teens and needs to stop. Teens are not the only people suffering from the underage drinking, adults and children are also affected.
Teenagers are America’s greatest natural resource, and they need to be protected from some of the evils that lurk in the world. A subject that needs special attention is the abuse of alcohol by teens. Statistics show that there is a problem currently between teens and alcohol. There are many causes of teenage drinking and effects that prove that drinking is an important issue that needs to be dealt with to preserve American teenagers. Teenage drinking will become worse of a problem if it continues unchecked on its current path to destruction. Alcohol abuse among teenagers in the United States is a plague that is destroying the structure of American society.
Based on information taken from NIH (National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism) by the age of fifteen around half of teens have had at least one drink and seventy percent by that age of 18 have had a drink. It seems harmless for youth to experiment with alcohol but there are serious risks that come with underage drinking such as injury, sexual assault, and even death. In 2008 there were more than one hundred ninety thousand underage people to visit the emergency room for alcohol related injuries. Drinking can impair decisions on sexual activity and can lead to sexually assaulting someone, or if in a crowd of drinkers the chance of being sexually assaulted is increased and even more so when it comes to youth. Alcohol in youth can even lead to death, around five thousand death are reported annually for alcohol related underage deaths. To help prevent underage drinking you can learn to look for signs in your youth. Look for problems in school, lack of concentration, bad memory, less regard for appearance, signs of alcohol use like smell and containers. If you are underage and thinking about drinking, don’t, wait tell you’re the appropriate age and then only drink in moderation and responsibly, also avoid youth that would pressure you into drinking, what may be cool isn’t the way to success.
Nearly 25 percent of teens drink alcohol because they think it is fun; however the problems it may bring are not so fun (Hyde 22). There over six times more teen deaths per year from alcohol than any other drug (O’Malley 30). Alcohol affects the body of teens as well as all of the developmental processes. A major issue of teens drinking is that it increases the chance of becoming an alcoholic in the future; which leads to lowered self-control, impaired judgment, and lowered inhibition (Heath 12). Alcohol can completely change the life of a teen from the time they start drinking till death. Alcohol affects so many aspects of a person’s life and once it does, it is so hard to get life back to normal. Alcohol effects teens by harming them
Society normally views teenagers as rebellious kids with an impulse to live new experiences. These experiences range from going to their first party to having their first alcoholic drink, and are sometimes as drastic as trying their first drug. Drinking alcoholic beverages is something that involves a lot of responsibility and can bring a plethora of negative consequences. This is the main reason why the United States has established a legal drinking age that I consider to be relatively high. With the legal drinking age being so high, while intending to avoid harmful situations, brings many repercussions that are equally as harmful.
Drinking when you’re a teenager may affect how you deal with your emotions. When moving into adulthood a teenager is going through many phases and issues. Without your proper emotions it would be hard to understand what you are going through. Also, a teenager’s immune system is not prepared for the effects of alcohol. If a teen waits for later when their immune system is developed they will handle alcohol better whereas, if they drink during teenage years their minds will not be focused and could affect their daily life. Media and peer pressure is also forcing teenagers to drink. Majority of teenage drinkers are pressured if we increase the drinking age to 21 teenagers will not be pressurized and they will be mature enough to make their own decisions. According to pbskids.org “Adults have lived longer, and so they are supposed to be better at making decisions and judgments, like whether one has had too much to drink. Young people may be more influenced by alcohol advertising, and might be quicker to let the media influence their decisions about drinking.” (It's My Life. Body. Alcohol. Your Questions | PBS Kids GO! (n.d.). Retrieved March 23, 2017, from http://pbskids.org/itsmylife/body/alcohol/article8.html). As shown by PBS Kids adults have set themselves for a healthier future by not drinking at a young age. Overall, drinking at a young age can have terrible long-term effects and it
Speaking relatively, the laws imposed on minors under the age of 21 are outright not fair. Taking a look at statistics, Minors find a way to consume alcohol in disregard of the law. Under age drinkers are also mandated to be given jail time if caught consuming alcoholic beverages. Besides these facts, The government should not have the ability to regulate what American citizens consume recreationally.
Things can happen to the teens once they drink alcohol. The alcohol consumption can interfere with the development of the teenager’s brain frontal lobes, essential for functions like emotional regulation, planning, and organization. It would increase traffic accidents if a teen’s were to drink at a young age. The young teens won't be able to even handle the alcohol because it's strong. Also they won't be able to handle the outcomes like having a hangover, being tipsy, etc. They are too young to even drink at a young age.
However, there’s more than enough facts to prove that statistically, underage drinking is a growing problem among us. Adolescents drink less frequently than adults, but in opposition, youths also consume larger amounts at a time. There are several different consequences resulting from drinking alcohol while underage, and social, neurological, and health repercussions are just three out of numerous effects. The hazards of underage drinking can only grow from here if there aren’t more steps taken to take control of the
Some may think that teenagers are grown up enough and are mature enough to drink alcoholic beverages at the age of eighteen. However, research indicates otherwise. To start off, alcohol is very harmful to the brain. It kills brain cells, and it affects the cerebellum, medulla, hippocampus and many other parts of the brain. It can be seen why alcohol is so dangerous in the article “Alcohol and Developing Brain”. The author says, “Alcohol is a central nervous system depressant. Alcohol can appear to be a stimulant because, initially, it depresses the part of the brain that controls inhibitions” (toosmarttostart.samhsa.gov). Since
Alcohol has been severely damaging young individuals health both mentally and physically. Even though alcohol can be harmful at any age it is especially dangerous for teens as their brains are still developing and cannot cope with alcohol the same way as an adult can. When consumed
First off, alcohol addiction and abuse among teenagers today is a bigger problem than ever before. The root of the problem lies in the fact that the teens are so exposed to the culture of this day and age, leading them to where they have easy access to alcohol. For example, their parents may already be alcoholics, and it's merely a few bad decisions later which could cause the child to have a few drinks and cloud their judgement. This is a big problem because their young bodies have never encountered anything like alcohol before, so in turn, the body does not know how to process it, and therefore leads to their downfall. A publication released by the National Institute of Alcoholism and Alcohol Abuse (NIAA) suggests that by age 18, an astounding 60% of US teens would have had at least one drink. Moreover, according to the NIAA, youth between the ages of 12 and 20 will often binge drink as well.
The death of a loved one is a tough thing to bear, it is even worse when that death comes from a