Answer me this please:
I'm 20, I live abroad, I've been able to legally consume alcohol here for 4 years now, am I an underage drinker?
(Clarification of the 4 years: 16 year olds where allowed to purchase low graduation alcohol, beer and wine, but not hard liqour. This law was modified a couple of years ago and the standard drinking age is now 18 for all alcoholic beverages)

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But do I attribute my dislike of alcohol for my lack of underage drinking? Not at all. It helped, sure, but I never saw the glamor (or point) in getting drunk. High risk? I'm not one for any kind of risks. It's cool because it's illegal? Yeah, that makes a lot of sense...

It grows on you. Beer isn't enjoyable at first, but once you drink it regularly you learn to appreciate it, and the same goes for wine and most other alcoholic beverages.
What is risky about it? vomiting on your shirt? having a bad headache the next day?
Alcohol is only dangerous if you don't know how to control yourself and drink responsibly. There's nothing dangerous about getting a little tipsy if you can control your actions.

I'd be lying if I said I have never had a drop of alcohol in my life, but I'm telling the truth when I say I don't drink. Heck, I hate the taste of alcohol. I've tried various kinds (several brands of beer, whiskey, wine, port, maybe some champagne), but just the slightest taste usually ends up with me spitting out said drink and washing my mouth out with a soda. I have yet to meet an alcoholic beverage that I liked, and I doubt I will meet any such drink until well after I turn 21.

But do I attribute my dislike of alcohol for my lack of underage drinking? Not at all. It helped, sure, but I never saw the glamor (or point) in getting drunk. High risk? I'm not one for any kind of risks. It's cool because it's illegal? Yeah, that makes a lot of sense...

My thoughts are this: I won't judge anyone based on their underage drinking. That's not my way. But I can have just as much fun with a non-alcoholic drink as someone who gets plastered after playing beer pong. More fun if you count the fact that I'm in complete control of my senses the entire evening.

I have just started in this group and let me first let you know that I am an adult and my job is teaching drug prevention to kids and adults. I don't think there is any one good answer as to why kids drink. I hear a lot of kids say that they drink underage b/c of problems at home. When I ask them if it helps, no one ever says that it solves their problems.

The question really is: Is alcohol necessary? I believe the answer is no. If people are honest, most will tell you that they drink b/c of the affect alcohol has on them. They tell you it's a social thing, but it usually turns into someone drinking more than just one. Another example is, people like to bring up the issue of wine and health. Studies show that it's the flavonoids and reservatol in the wine that is good for the heart. These chemicals are found in dark grapes that wine comes from. Studies show that the benefits may actually come from the grapes and not the alcohol.

People like to bring up the fact that someone can be sent to war at the age of 18, yet they cannot buy alcohol. I believe these are two different topics that should not be compared. The number one killer of people between the age of 17 and 24 in the U.S. is drinking alcohol and driving. Fewer U.S. service people have been killed in 5 years of combat in Iraq and Afghanistan (approximately 4800) than are killed each year in the U.S. due to drunk driving (approximately 25,000 per year). At least someone who dies in combat or serving their country can be remembered for doing something they felt was noble rather than dying b/c of drinking and driving.

As for lower drinking ages in European countries, here is a news article regarding a car crash where 6 people ages 16-20 were killed because of their drinking and driving.

> That response underscored a fundamental difference between U.S. and European approaches to drunk driving among young people: Americans > have raised the drinking age to 21; Europeans keep it low but put faith in stiff rules and regulations.

> While most European countries issue driver's licenses at age 18, the difficulty of passing the test, high insurance costs and wide use of > trains and buses all mean that young people generally begin to drive much later than in the United States.

That tells me that they also have problems with drinking and driving but their system is very different from the U.S. and maybe we should not compare the two.

One of the most difficult issues kids are faced with is perception. Kids are concerned with what others think of them. Most kids tell me they are not, but after they think about it they realize that they are is concerned with what someone thinks of them. It is a fundamental need we all have. The need to feel accepted by someone is very important. Sometimes we do things so we can fit in or feel accepted. I think the best thing you can do is to be honest with yourself. Alcohol does not solve problems; conversely it creates problems that tend to stay with you a long time. There is no need to drink alcohol, but because society has become so dependent on it, we tend to think that we must use it or we won't fit in.

Please let me know what you think.

lets see look at the uk and europe they can drink at 16 but america at 18 you can be drafted and die for your country but you cant buy guinees genuine draft its stupid and messed up and yes i have drunk alcohol to be honest its ok but not the best thing in the world to do as i have had times that i wish i hadnt done something (nothing too stupid with girls or drunk driving) but i have done some stupid things and i have learned from my mistakes and teh main reason teenagers drink is because there parents dont want them to same with being sexually active (well some times)

I think kids drink while they are underage because it is a risk-thing. Since they are not allowed to do it, they want to. You always want what you can't have, and that is a good example of that. I think that the only way to prevent it, or lower the rates of people that die from it is to present them with the facts about what it does to your health. Also, the parents of the kids need to be reached. I come across so many people who say that the younger generation is the most impressionable, so only talk to them. But in the long run, the parents contribute a lot to whether or not their kid will drink when they are older; the living environment that people grow up in mirrors what they will do when they are older, unless they are one of those special cases. No, I haven't drunk, but I have friends who do. And while I don't like the fact that they drink, it doesn't do anything to our friendships together.

Well, that doesn't mean we should ban it for everybody else. I'm an 18 year old college student, I can buy a gun, go off to war, and get sentenced for a crime as an adult - but drink alcohol? No, I'm way too immature for that. We tried prohibition of alcohol for everybody,remember? And it was a huge embarrassing failure. But banning it for the first three years of an man's adulthood will work just fine?

I think that it's funny to see people at my school going around "Let's go get hammered this weekend"

I'm seventeen years old and I used to party. I've been hammered, a few times. But the last time I drank, about 6 months ago, I got alcohol poisoning, so I won't be drinking until I'm legal again at least.

I asked a doctor, and she said getting drunk and getting a hangover kills a lot of brain cells and does other harmful things to your body; but the death of more brain cells that die regularly isn't worth the risk of drinking, in my opinion. So, even when I turn 21, I probably wont drink because I don't want to kill my brain anymore than I already have

I personally don't drink and I'm sixteen years old. Everyone else I know drinks at least once a week and when they do, they get completely drunk.

I really dislike when people think that Alcohol isn't a drug, it is. I do not look down on people that drink, but I think that when you get completely trashed you put yourself at risk, but it IS a personal choice.

If teens just calmed it down a bit and didn't drink till the point of passing out, they wouldn't make bad choices and drinking would be safer.

underage drinking is fine provided you fufill two requirements

1 you are old enough that it wont cause serious developmental problems (ie 16 and up, 8 year olds shouldnt be drinking for any reason)

2 you have the capacity to drink maturely

this means having the common sense and will power to not drink heavily and then drive a car, play with a gun, play on a balcony, go swimming, set fires or do anything else that will lead to you becoming one of those statistics that have been quoted on the page

I sent it through noisemail since not everybody needs to know where I go to school or my full name...yada yada yada

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I even wrote a column for my school newspaper about the very topic we are talking about...I can link to it, if you want.

That would be nice if you could. Thank you.

Yeah, I agree with you...

I even wrote a column for my school newspaper about the very topic we are talking about...I can link to it, if you want.

Benje, this is slightly off topic, but let me tell you what bugs me:

1. The stats I use from the CDC never say who was driving. I know a lot of times it was teens, but I lost a teenage friend who was killed by a driver not paying attention. The driver was 23.

2. Driving while on a cellphone or with distractions can be tantamount to driving drunk, yet it is rare that people try to do anything about it.

My sources are all in the resources of the "Driving Responsibly" cause. The SADD one is probably the most concise.


EDIT: Here are some highlights:

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# Driver inattention is the leading factor in most crashes and near-crashes.

# Nearly 80% of crashes and 65% of near-crashes involved some form of driver inattention within three seconds before the event.

I believe that's from 2005. Here's the source.

I agree, but it's a stupid way to die. Let me show you this:

Teens and Driving

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Every year, more American teenagers die in car wrecks than any other way. Nationally, that number was 5,610 fatalities in 2004. In the Chicago region alone, from 1994 through 2004, an average of 57 died annually in accidents involving teen drivers.

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Research shows teens are more likely to speed and less likely to wear seat belts or recognize hazardous situations.

Add alcohol to the mix and a teenager behind the wheel of a car can be a very volatile, random and deadly combination.

Anyway...back to underage drinking:
Underage Drinking: The Stats

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All youth, ages 12-17:

* 7.2 million drank at least once in the past year
* 2.7 million drank about once a month or more in the past year
* 1 million drank at least once a week or more in the past year
* Girls were as likely as boys their age to drink alcohol
* Hispanic youth were as likely as white non-Hispanic youth to be current drinkers
* Black non-Hispanic youth were the least likely of the racial/ethnic groups to be current drinkers
* 66 percent thought drinking 4 or 5 alcoholic drinks nearly every day was a great risk
* 47 percent thought drinking 4 or 5 alcoholic drinks once or twice a week was a great risk

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8th graders:

* 25 percent reported drinking alcohol in the past month
* 8 percent reported being drunk
* 15 percent reported binge drinking in the 2 weeks prior to the survey
* 1 percent reported drinking every day

10th graders:

* 40 percent reported drinking alcohol in the past month
* 22 percent reported being drunk
* 25 percent reported binge drinking in the 2 weeks prior to the survey
* 2 percent reported drinking every day

12th graders:

* 53 percent reported drinking alcohol in the past month
* 34 percent reported being drunk
* 30 percent reported binge drinking in the 2 weeks prior to the survey
* 4 percent reported drinking every day

Interesting stuff, to say the least.

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The leading cause of death ages 15-24 are motor vehicle accidents. 15-24 causes of death

What does that have to do with underage drinking? Not all are caused by drunk drivers.

Honestly, if drinking wasn't made into a big deal, it probably wouldn't be a big deal and kids wouldn't want it as much.

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Originally posted by Ilive4Him:
in my opinion kids drink, because of one of the 3 reasons, 1} peer pressure. 2} to get rid of pain they are goin through. 3} just to try it out and see what its like.
yes, iam underage and have drank. i sorta regret it.

I agree 100%. People drink because they see kids their age drinking on TV, they see their older siblings and friends drinking, and most importantly, they see their parents drinking. The mind set throughout the United States is that if its okay for your parents/sibilings/actors to drink, then in the end it really wont kill you. Unfortunately, that is not the case. The leading cause of death ages 15-24 are motor vehicle accidents. 15-24 causes of death The leading cause of cancer death overall is lung cancer (by a landslide). (Thanks to all the smoking in this country.)

In addition, kids drink at younger ages is due to the fact that there aren't too many things to do in small communities around the US. Community centers and teen centers are effective for some time (I work at one and it definitely keeps kids off the streets). Malls and movie theaters aren't making the situation better. If kids aren't shopping or are done with their movie, they use security to force them off the property. What is that telling our youth? "We don't want you drinking or smoking...and it's great that you have chosen our establishment to use as an alternative activity...but if you aren't spending your money here with us...we don't want you here" That, to me, is the stupidest thing businesses could do. It also doesn't help that alcohol companies and tobacco companies advertise everywhere.

If you drink, you drink...my friends drink, but I have chosen not to drink underage. I'm not going to stop you if you do, but if you do choose to drink, be smart about it. Don't drive drunk. If you do, you are digging your own grave.

Be heard. Be responsible.

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Of course. I'm not saying it's that way for everyone, but in general...if you let a kid drink, they are going to drink, and if they are young enough, their brains aren't developed enough to understand the concept of drinking responsibly, not mention that under developed brains are more at risk to becoming physically addicted to a substance.

I think you're confusing alcohol abuse with alcoholism. A person can abuse alcohol without actually being an alcoholic.

I myself have only drinken whine on trips to europe or at fancy dinners with my parents. i have taken a sip of vodka and dido woth beer. I have never abused alcohol and i hope i don't anytime soon sense i am 13. When i here about my friends or even my 18 year old sister drinking it scares me. when my friends do i know they get drunk around 19 year old guys at highschool parties. I think drinking is only okay if it's not axssesive and in a safe environment.

My answer would be yes..but I won't bore you with the reasons I choose to quit..

However..here is some interesting info in regards to teen drinking..

The average age when youth first try alcohol is 11 years for boys and 13 years for girls. The average age at which Americans begin drinking regularly is 15.9 years old. Interesting..since the legal age to drink in most states is what 21??

In my case..the age I started is lower than 13..
The last time I drank..I was 14...

in my opinion kids drink, because of one of the 3 reasons, 1} peer pressure. 2} to get rid of pain they are goin through. 3} just to try it out and see what its like.
yes, iam underage and have drank. i sorta regret it.