Legal drinking age controversy in the United States
The legal drinking age varies from country to country. In the United States, the legal drinking age is currently 21. Other countries have raised the prices of alcohol and encouraged the general public to drink less. Having a legal drinking age of 21 allows for the hope that drinking would become less reckless and the people drinking would be more mature to make reasonable decisions when it comes to alcohol consumption.
History behind alcohol consumption
Fermented beverages contain ethanol, a consumable member of the alcohol class often simply called "alcohol." They are legal in most countries. Currently, alcohol such as red wine is used to reduce risk of coronary artery disease, as an analgesic for pain, relief from exhaustion in hard labor, and a "greeter" at social gatherings and gaming entertainment. In Egypt, alcohol is made in the home on an everyday basis and used as a thirst quencher and to provide the majority of nutrients and calories. In China, alcohol was used as a "spiritual food" and for ceremonial use. Europe enforces strict alcohol and liquor tax laws that are aimed at targeting young people. They also limit the hours that stores selling alcohol are open. They feel that this contributes to their lower numbers of alcohol-related problems. The US, along with only a handful of other countries, maintains the highest drinking age worldwide at 21. In 1985, South Dakota challenged the Drinking Age Act. In 1987, the Supreme Court ruled the Act was constitutional and the States still had the right to set their own drinking ages. However, the Federal Government can give the state a 10% penalty on highway funds if the state chooses to have their drinking age lower than 21. Not even a year later, all 50 states of the United States officially made 21 the minimum legal drinking age. MLDA-21 is not the only variable; the shift in demographics, increased enforcement, increased seat belt use, safer cars, increased parental monitoring and "designated driver" emphasis could also be a reason why after the age was raised, motor vehicle incidents have decreased.
Epidemiology
Alcohol is the most commonly used and abused drug among youth in the United States, more than tobacco and illicit drugs. Although the purchase of alcohol by persons under the age of 21 is illegal, people aged 12–20 years old drink 11% of all alcohol consumed in the US. Among the 14 million adults aged 21 or older who were classified as having alcohol dependence or abuse in the past year, more than 13 million had started using alcohol before age 21. Since 1984, when the National Minimum Drinking Age Act made the minimum legal drinking age for every state in the nation 21, there has been a steady increase in prevalence of alcohol use, heavy use, and frequent use among underage drinkers as the age increases. Across all ages, highest rates for alcohol abuse occur among persons 19 years old due to illegality of their behavior, and peak alcohol dependence is age 22. In 2013, more than two thirds of American students had consumed alcohol by the end of high school; and more than half of 12th graders had been drunk at least once in their lifetime.
Socioeconomic effects
The US Economy loses hundreds of billions of dollars from lost productivity and earnings with alcohol-related illness being a primary factor. The most dangerous social problem involved in underage drinking is driving under the influence because of its contribution to fatalities and injury among adolescents. One-third of all car accidents among adolescents have to do with alcohol consumption. Some states have lower alcohol taxes and even made alcohol available to be purchased tax-free at state-owned stores to compete with Maine, Vermont, and Massachusetts. Teen drinking in high school is down 23% since 1983 when the minimum legal drinking age was enacted and binge drinking is down 17%. Alcohol can cause problems throughout life, it is not only young adults that are affected, people into their sixties struggle with alcoholism. The movement of young adults from high school to college shows that 44% of college students were binge drinkers and that binge drinking peaked at age 21. Approximately three quarters of college students aged 18–20 years old drank alcohol in 2009. Within the U.S., youth are being targeted by social media in order to drive sales higher by highlighting alcohol consumption in a positive way. The legal drinking age was set to 21 years of age because studies showed that the leading cause of death of people age 1 to 34 accounted for one third of deaths due to unintentional injury from alcohol consumption.
Psychological effects
The liver is the organ that is most affected by alcohol. The brain is also affected, however, and can be damaged leading to the drinker's behavioral changes and emotional distress. Three noticeable effects of alcohol injury to the brain are memory loss, confusion, and augmentation. An adult is legally considered the age of 18, right to vote, contractual capacity, and financial responsibility. By age 15, adolescents are as capable as adults at logically assessing the likelihood of risk due to their development of emotional and behavioral self-regulation by this age. Studies on adolescent sensitivity to alcohol showed that there were few gross behavioral changes between children after they were given a dose of alcohol that would cause intoxication in adults. Good parental communication and high levels of parental nurture can lead to lower levels of alcohol abuse in adolescents.
Physiological effects
Alcohol abuse can lead to many problems, including increased chances of developing certain cardiovascular conditions, depressant effect resulting in decreased attention and slow reaction speed, loss of control of actions, mood changes, addiction, brain deterioration, and pregnancy issues. Alcohol increases flow of insulin, which speeds up glucose metabolism and results in low blood sugar. This could be fatal for diabetics. Peak blood alcohol concentrations are reached in an average time of 0.75 to 1.35 hours depending on dose and last time of meal. Several factors affect a person's intoxication rate, including absorption rate factors such as food intake and drink strength, distribution factors, such as body fat, type, and weight, and Elimination factors, such as rate of consumption, tolerance, and gender differences.
Views
There are multiple views on the drinking age and how it should be handled. Most people argue one of three views, whether it should stay 21, lower to 18, or raise to 25. Some people, such as sociology Professor David Hanson, suggest lowering it. Underage drinking is already common, but NHTSA spokeswoman Evelyn Avant believes that lowering the drinking age would lead to even more alcohol use among young people. Many people say they wouldn't mind the high drinking age as long as the enlistment age were also 21. There are also some who believe the age should stay the same for hard liquor, while being lowered for wine and beer.
