The Problem Of Teen Drinking

Underage drinking is a problem within the US and has been for some time. No matter how hard many businesses try it still goes on because of the kid’s lucrative ways to obtain it. Many kids use fake IDs or have a person of age purchase it for them. This problem of alcohol abuse is most prominently seen it college. One college it often occurs at is Indiana University in Bloomington. The early habit of drinking alcohol can have many bad effects on one’s body at a young age and causes habits, decrease in grades, and other negative outcomes.

Driving while intoxicated persists to be a major problem amongst teenage drivers. Although there are many precautions taken in order to prevent this type of activity, whether by the school, media or parents’, teens proceed to place themselves into these very high risk situations. These persistent behaviors drive us to look further into why teens partake in this type of activity or better yet what and who is influencing this age group. As asked by the principal I will attempt to explain this behavior using several theories

Drunk driving is an issue that effects many people across our nation. People do not realize the affects alcohol can have on the body and mind that slow decision making while driving. This issue begins in the home. Children see their parents, or other adults figures, have a beer or a cocktail and get in the car. Thus, making it seem like it is acceptable to drink and drive. “One in three people will be involved in an alcohol-related crash in their lifetime” (MADD).

Drinking and driving is one of the biggest social issues for teens across the United States. Getting behind the wheel of a vehicle after consuming alcohol is a very dangerous thing no matter what age you are. However, teens do not think about the consequences of drinking and driving until it is already too late. Many things contribute to this growing problem of teen drinking and driving. First, there is a lack of education about drinking and driving in schools today. Next, peer pressure is difficult for many teens to resist. Finally, the access that teens have to alcohol and to vehicles is not monitored. According to blah blah study, 000% of high school students admit

Once the allure of alcohol is no longer a social trend, parents would be stripped of their worries of their “rebellious teenagers sneaking off to basements and backwoods to binge drink far from adult supervision” (Griggs). Parents cannot protect their children from every hazard in the world, but they can educate their kids and desensitize their kids to the thrill of drinking out of adult supervision. Opposers claim that the current law “...[diminishes] the number of traffic deaths caused by young drunk drivers...” but they fail to realize that “...tougher seat belt and D.U.I. rules have contributed to the decrease, too” (Glaser). “Raising the drinking age hasn't reduced drinking -- it’s merely driven it underground..” (Glaser). With the legal drinking age at 18 and the incorporation of alcohol awareness classes, citizens would develop safer habits when consuming

In 2013, 10,076 people were killed in drunk driving incidents. Out of those people, 65% (6,515) were drivers, 27% (2,724) were passengers, and 8% (837) were non-passengers (“Drunk Driving Statistics”). Over half of those fatalities (67.1%) involved blood alcohol levels over .15% (“Drunk Driving Statistics”). The legal blood-alcohol content is .08%. Drunk driving caused 31% of deaths in car crashes in 2013 (“Drunk Driving Statistics”). In 2012, 402 people were killed by alcohol impairment in North Carolina (“Drunk Driving Statistics”). These numbers, though they seem astonishing, have been cut in half since 1991 (“Drunk Driving Statistics”). Even though the number of fatalities has been lowered, that number is not low enough. Most drunk drivers are repeat offenders. Lives are being taken because of the careless attitude of the drunk drivers. Drunk driving is selfish; those who commit this crime do not think about the extreme consequences of their actions. In North America it is estimated that 1-5 drivers has been drinking and 1 in 10 is legally impaired on any Friday or Saturday night (Root). Many groups, including MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving), are fighting to stop drunk driving. Unfortunately, drunk driving cannot be stopped. People will always commit this heinous crime. The numbers may go down, but unfortunately there will always be a number. The only way to continually decrease the amount of lives lost is to increase punishments for drunk driving.

The sobering fact is drivers under the age of 21 are responsible for 17% of fatal alcohol related accidents, even though they represent only 10% of licensed drivers (Stim, R. Teen Drunk Driving: The Sobering Facts of Underage DUIs (n.d.). There are approximately 2000 deaths associated with under aged drinking and according to the blood alcohol content of the victims, the main contributing factor is binge drinking, averaging 5 times the legal limit. Research has also shown that more times than not, the underage drunk driving is not wearing seat belts, increasing the chances of a fatal accident. They have found that this # is 74% of the population of drunk drivers involved in fatal

Alcohol is a drink that possesses a seducing effect to tempt many citizens. Adults worldwide consume countless cans of beers, wine, vodkas, and other alcohol beverages. However, its luring quality has been secretly shared to minors, resulting to a problem called Underage Drinking. This situation has existed for quite some time. In the past, underage drinking was considered a miniscule crime, and wasn’t strictly restrained or monitored. As we continued to remain oblivious, numbers of adolescent drinkers have gradually increased as they used the tolerant rules to their advantage. Now, the problem has become significantly noticeable, and we can no longer neglect it. High school, even middle school students have been found with

Movies often portray college or even high school parties consisting of alcoholic beverages. Falling not far from reality, it is very common for college students to have a diverse age group of friends, meaning a person over the legal drinking age.The reason for most underage DUIs is because of the fact that they would rather drive influenced on the contrary to risking punishment from the law or even being kicked out of their college. According to the New York Times magazine since the National Minimum Drinking Age passed the copious amount of DUI’s for those in the age of 18 to 21, has increased by 53% of fatal DUI’s. In England, where the drinking age is eighteen, the present of fatal DUI’s is 17%(2) lower then the United States for those in the same age group.

A lot of people do not take drinking and driving serious because they take they can make it home safe, but really they either get in wrecks or pulled over before ever making it home. “In 1996 there were 17,126 alcohol-related traffic fatalities, representing 41% of all traffic fatalities that year. In addition, more than 321,000 persons were injured in crashes where police reported the presence of alcohol involvement.¨ ()

Drunk driving is a major risk to yourself, to passengers and occupants sharing the road with you. Innocent bystanders could also suffer. Adding the risk of humans, there is also the damage to the vehicles involved and any other property into which they may crash. Drunk driving is considered a serious crime in every state. It wrong, irresponsible and destroys many lives. Many temptations are faced in college culture and one of them is underage drinking and driving. Underage drinking and driving has essentially become an epidemic, rapidly developing among today’s youth.(Kaplan) Some people don’t see underage drinking as an issue, when in fact it is a huge issue that every teenager will face. Unless we are able to put a stop to underage drinking and driving through education.

Approximately one million people are injured in alcohol-related traffic crashes every year and young people, ages 16 to 24 are involved in 28% of those alcohol-related driving accidents, although they make up only 14% of the U.S. population. On any given weekend evening, one in 10 drivers on America's roads has been drinking and according to the latest statistics, in a family of five the prospect of you or someone in your family being involved in an alcohol-related motor vehicle accident in their lifetime, is an astounding 200 percent. That's a lot of tragic, meaningless deaths that could actually have been avoided.

Low graduation rate can be problem due to alcohol abuse in high school teenagers . Teens can get stressed about school turn to alcohol and drop out of school. According to national survey data, 66% of students surveyed report alcohol use by the end of high school (Doumas 1). National survey data indicate alcohol use increases substantially from the 10th to 12th grade , including increases in lifetime prevalence of alcohol use and drunkenness, past 30- day alcohol use, and binge drinking in the past 2 weeks (Doumas 1). One explanation for the high rates of alcohol use and heavy drinking in high school juniors and seniors is that this period is associated with a high level of risky decision making and greater autonomy (Doumas

          Alcohol is the most widely used drug among youth. It causes serious and potentially life-threatening problems for this population. Research indicates that drinking is associated with risk-taking and sensation-seeking behavior among adolescents. Alcohol has disinhibiting effects that may increase the likelihood of unsafe activities.In 1997, 21 percent of the young drivers 15 to 20 years old who were killed in crashes were intoxicated. For young drivers, alcohol involvement is higher among males than among females. In 1997, 25 percent of the young male drivers involved in fatal crashes had been drinking at the time of the crash, compared with 12 percent of the young female drivers

Every problem has a beginning, where the domino effect starts. In most cases people get started drinking not because they like it, but because it is illegal and it gives them a chance to rebel. The so-called “rebel” becomes bored of drinking alone and eventually seeks “company” when they are drinking. The only catch is that the “rebel” can not be the only one drinking so the “company” has to drink. This is where the problem with peer pressure and teenage drinking begins and the first domino starts the chain reaction. There are two types of peer pressure. There is direct peer pressure where a subject’s peers actually force him into having a drink. There is also indirect peer pressure where the subject enters a setting and his peers are drinking so he decides to have a drink to fit in with the rest of his peers (Articles-Teenage Drinking 2). Surveys show that alcohol abuse is related to teenage activities such as going on dates and going to parties (Teenage Alcohol Misuse 2).