Summary: A new study has found that there is a connection between the age people are when they first drink and whether or not they become heavy drinkers. The younger people are when they have their first alcoholic drink, the more likely they are to become alcoholics and binge drink. If kids have their first drink while still in high school, their risk of becoming binge drinkers is increased.
Connection: We have learned in health class how substance abuse and addiction can be hereditary. We know that high school and college kids are more likely to binge drink. We have studied how substance abuse can be a way for students to deal with stress from schoolwork. This article shows how being introduced to alcohol when you are still a teen can also put you at greater risk for addiction.
Question: Do you think there is a way to delay kids from drinking to reduce the number of future alcoholics? Is it possible to lessen the academic and social stress on students so they don't feel pressured to drink in the first place?
I think the fact that we don't want children to drink at a young age makes the children want to drink because they aren't allowed to. Some kids defy the rules for the fun of it, and many teenagers go through this rebellious stage. Lessening the strictness on under aged drinking could either help this problem because they don't have the rebellious urge to do so, or create a whole generation of alcoholics. Making it harder for kids to get their hands on alcohol (which will be hard in the first place considering the amount of alcohol around us) will likely not help, because if a kid is determined to get that alcohol, they are most likely going to get it. In terms of those who are stressed into drinking, I think it can be stopped from the source: Kill (or a less violent option) those who are pressuring others into drinking.
ReplyDeleteI agree that a way to reduce the number of kids drinking at a young age is by relaxing age limits on drinking. It would make drinking less of a big deal. Kids wouldn't think of it as a right of passage, and therefore wouldn't pressure each other to drink as much. Also, kids could then easily see that binge drinking is a bad choice.
DeleteI feel like this is a little vague. My parents let me have a sip of whatever they're having for dinner, even though I normally refuse because I really do not like beer.
ReplyDeleteOne possibility is to let people drink before they can drive, the first reason being that they will already be able to drink before they get their license to make them less likely to get in a crash from drinking, and the second being that if someone wants to pass their driving test, they won't drink, even though they are allowed to, making them less likely to drink a ton in the future. Hopefully my reasoning made a little bit of sense, that was just an idea I had.
I think the facts that kids start to drinking alcohols in a really young ages have a lot to do with the parents, and the best way to delay kids from drinking, is to delay the introduction of alcohol as long as possible and if the kid is going to be drinking alcohol , parent have to make sure kids do so in a safe and controlled environment.
ReplyDeleteI think kids start drinking at young age because of what there going through. Sometimes drinking is their relief for some people. Some people think cutting is relief. Some pictures just do not care about their kids so they think they can do whatever they want because no one cares.
ReplyDeleteI personally have been asked to drink many times but I refuse to avoid becoming a heavy drinker or even a drinker.
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