Effects of Underaged Drinking

512 Words3 Pages
“The carnage caused by underage drinking in America is unrelenting.” NLLEA Alcohol is the most commonly abused drug by teenagers in America. On www.ojjdp.gov they mention how alcohol influences you to partake in risky sexual behaviors. Youth who decide to drink and have sex have a higher chance of becoming pregnant or contracting an STD. People often look at alcohol consumption as a normal young adult behavior, but are blind to all the consequences from it. Underaged drinking is a social issue and causes many problems from learning problems to alcoholism. Alcohol is a depressant and people tend to fall back on it in times of trouble. I can’t figure out why person’s under the age of twenty-one want to drink alcohol. Is it to get acceptance from their peers? Or is it to relax and sit back after a bad day? Both are factors on why teenagers drink. Teenagers often look to their peers for acceptance and approval. Your friends are a lot like the person you are from music to the clothes you wear. Some just want to escape and drink their pain away. They tend to drink large amounts of alcohol in one sitting which is called binge drinking. That can be very bad considering alcohol is a depressant and you can become dependent on it. Drinking alcohol underaged can affect the still-growing brain leading to a learning deficiency and mental disorders. Alcohol tends to make you lazy and makes you show a loss of interest in your school work and extra curricular activities. Alcohol causes alterations in the brain. The human brain doesn’t stop developing until mid 20’s.Alcohol can effect your memory and slow down your reflexes. Depression, anxiety, and bipolar disorder all go hand and hand with the consumption of alcohol. From the ages thirteen to twenty-one, you have lots to learn and changes you will face and you don’t want alcohol to be a factor in your decision making.
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