An average person must wait until age 16 to start driving, age 18 to marry without parental consent, and age 35 to become president (Minton). The age limit for alcohol is based on research which shows that young people react differently to alcohol. This means that typically anyone is able to acknowledge to lower the drinking age. In Rober Voas' article "There's no benefit to lowering the drinking age, " he states that lowering the age for drinking alcohol would just make matters worse, along with a paragraph that states: "I keep hearing the same refrains: 'If you're old enough to go to war, you should be old enough to drink,' or 'the drinking-age law just increases the desire for the forbidden fruit,' or 'lower crash rates are due to tougher enforcement, not the 21 law,' or "Europeans let their kids drink, so they learn how to be more responsible,' or finally, 'I did it when I was a kid, and I'm OK.'"
The drinking age isn't meant to be a big deal, but the first couple years of lowering the drinking age could cause many students to be reckless. There are many responsibilities that come along with drinking at a low age, most importantly drinking and driving. Lowering the age will reduce all such problems, but at first will seem extremely hectic. Lowering the current drinking age of 21-and-over will allow young Americans, most of who are perfectly capable of drinking responsibly; to no longer drink in private or in short amounts of time, thus alleviating potentially dangerous conditions. Drinking privately is extremely unsafe and when kids are in a situation they can't handle, they can then ask for help.
They learn how to control their drinking and what to expect from the effects of the alcohol (Nayak 141-142). This may be true for some parts of the world, but it does not deem overall success in achieving overall healthy drinking habits. It still leads to harm development and early age drinking still has potential to raise the risk of alcohol abuse in adult life. As an example, by Wechsler and Nelson, most European countries have lower drinking ages, this has resulted in a rise of drinking problems among teens and the amount of binge drinking is doubled that of the U.S. When New Zealand lowered their drinking age in 1999, they were definite increases in the number of emergency injury influenced by alcohol, as well as the higher rate of
Many people see 18 year olds as irresponsible, immature kids but not every teenager is. Not all teenagers want to get drunk every night. Some just want to have a glass of wine or a cold beer at the end of a long day. I feel that this law should be changed for the people that will not abuse the power and let the ones that will pay the consequences of their
By now, it should be clear to society that teenagers will resort to drinking, no matter what. The enforcement of the minimum drinking age law is fundamentally ineffective. A survey had been conducted in 2004 by the University of Michigan which found that “71% of high school seniors had consumed alcohol within the last year, while 94% reported that it was ‘fairly easy’ or ‘very easy’ for them to obtain alcohol” (Minimum Drinking Age). Teenagers find drinking to be incredibly alluring because it is seen as the “forbidden fruit” that allows them to achieve a badge of rebellion and a sense of adulthood. However, these teenagers also live in fear of getting caught for drinking and thus, consume their alcohol in unsafe environments; typically, these dwellings are where they can “escape” disturbances and predicaments, but usually encounter more.
This sends a conflicting message to the young person, that drinking is permissible at an earlier age than 21. Scientists conclude that early drinking by adolescents increases the lifetime likelihood of alcohol dependence, and that overall drinking levels in a society are directly linked to drinking problems (NIAA p. 2). The peers of an individual can also have a strong influence upon drinking habits. A person is likely to behave according to their friends’ standards in order fit in and be accepted. If peers encourage others to drink alcohol underage, often teens will drink to feel more accepted by their peers.
Should the Legal Drinking Age be Lowered? Alcohol has taken the lives of many young adults and in order to stop this chain reaction from occurring once again with new generations there needs to be a change. Young adults under 21 drink now because it is illegal and it is what causes them to drink irresponsibly and causes them to do many regrettable things, knowing that they are going against authority. On college campuses nationwide students are currently drinking illegally while under the age of 21 and if the drinking age was changed the whole aspect of drinking would be looked at differently. Lowering the drinking age, I feel would be the best solution to solving the underground drinking problem, it would allow for drinking to be more “open.” Having the drinking age at 21 allows for there to me more difficulty in keeping track of the kids who use it because they do it secretly and tend to abuse it more.
[23][36] MLDA 21 exerts valuable social pressure on potential underage drinkers. Youth may choose not to drink, or to drink less often, because of decreased social acceptability or increased risks from parental or legal authorities. Older youth and adults may furnish alcoholic beverages to minors less frequently, and licensed alcohol outlets may sell to minors less frequently, because of their perceptions that it is illegal, morally wrong, or because they might be caught.
To Change or Not A long debated issue in the United States is the age at which one can drink. As many youth feel, the drinking age should be lowered. On the contrary, the drinking age should stay right where it is or even be raised. Alcohol is a drug that is potentially addictive. Alcohol intoxicates the brain, leaving you feeling disoriented and slowing your reflexes.
The medical irresponsibility of allowing teenagers to drink alcohol on a legal basis is also obvious to those who have basic knowledge. Consuming alcohol on a regular basis can negatively affect the development of an individual’s brain’s frontal lobes, which are responsible for emotional regulations, as well as planning and organizing. Underage individuals who consume alcohol put themselves at more risks of addiction, decreased ability of decision-making, tend to behave less responsibly, and may become violent, depressed, and even prone to suicide. The so called “trickle-down effect”, well known to sociologists, is another reason against lowering drinking age which should be taken into consideration. This effect implies to individuals who already have a right to purchase alcohol and consume alcohol, while also tend to buy it for their younger