Teenage Drinking Habits

The current trend to introduce alcohol to underage teens to drink eighteen needs to be urgently reviewed in light of recent Australian research into adolescent drinking.

A team from the Institute of Melbourne Murdoch Children's Research, monitoring of consumption patterns in 1520 young people over a period of ten years and has found that no level of drinking for teenagers.

Teenagers under the age of eighteen years who drink even small amounts of alcohol have a significantly higher risk of alcohol abuse when they move into adulthood. In fact, low drinkers are closer to the high-level drinkers than those who do not drink at all when it comes to alcohol-related problems.

This research provides evidence of the abandonment of the approach of harm reduction, where teenagers learn to drink in moderation, and even an increase in the minimum drinking age.

The move towards zero alcohol for those under 18 has plenty of support from health professionals across the country. There is no doubt teens drinking is linked to a variety of risk behaviors in particular sexual activity, violence and antisocial behavior.

The aged brain research conducted over the last ten leaves little doubt that those who begin drinking at eighteen years are very susceptible to developing addiction problems in their twenties.

A type of paper-wiring of the brain occurs at the age of 13 to 18, which means that habits such as smoking and alcohol consumption are more likely to become entrenched at this point, if they started in the twenties. In the same way that skills learned in the sports complex of age stay for life, so is the teenage less healthy pastimes such as lying on the couch playing video games and drinking becomes addictive.

The evidence shows that we must question the relevance of the approach of harm reduction and consider the zero alcohol for young people.

This will be a challenge to say the least that the current trend of young people up to age is nearing epidemic levels. Twelve years now want to dress like 16 years and 16 years want to act like 21 years younger, with the same rights, but some adult responsibilities.

Increasingly, alcohol consumption is seen by youth as an essential rite of passage that should be allowed at an earlier and earlier.

The pressure now placed on young adults to enable them to drink under age is enormous. The legal age is now seen by many young people as usual and parents who resist may feel so out of sync as they surely must come from another planet.

There is no doubt raising the age to drink or to suggest that young people delay drinking until they are eighteen will be achieved with enormous resistance from young people.

Therefore the introduction of zero alcohol under eighteen need strong leadership to adults involving schools, parents and community groups.

But the evidence seems clear for the long term interests of young people as more and more this is the only option that people should make self-righteous.