Why Do Teenagers Drink Alcohol? By Tanya Prorokova Group A

Alcohol is the drug of choice among youth. Many young people are experiencing the consequences of drinking too much, at too early an age. As a result, underage drinking is a leading public health problem in the whole world.

Each year, thousands of young people under the age of 21 die as a result of underage drinking; this includes also many deaths from motor vehicle crashes and from suicide, as well as hundreds from other injuries such as falls, burns and so on.

Yet drinking continues to be widespread among adolescents. According to some data three-fourths of 11th graders, more than two-thirds of 10th graders, and about two in every five 8th graders have consumed alcohol.

Teenagers consume alcohol for a number of reasons. There is not just one dimension to it. Teenagers are at an age when they want to experiment with everything.

The curiosity to consume alcohol sometimes leads them towards alcohol addiction. Teenagers can sometimes go through rough patches. It can be due to relationship problems or something to do with their parents. They are unable to cope with these issues and tend to get depressed.

Many times teenagers witness their parents fighting and verbally abusing each other. This also impacts their mental state.

One of the leading reasons for teenagers to drink is parents divorcing. Whenever such a thing happens, teenagers are known to seek solace in alcohol and drugs. This primarily because they are not mentally strong enough to handle these types of issues. Many of them can cope up but not all. Such issues play a significant role in their mental state and hence, they turn to alcohol.

RATHER IT IS THE SITUATION THAT ENCOURAGES THEM TO TURN TO ALCOHOL. MANY TIMES WHEN THEY ARE STRESSED OUT, THEY GIVEN TO PEER PRESSURE AND THEN, ONE THING LEADS TO ANOTHER. You cannot blame the teenagers for their addiction.

Also, another reason to drink alcohol is that teenagers want to impress friends. They want to be cool in front of friends. And, they believe that drinking alcohol is a way of being cool, adult-like and trendy.

Drinking and Driving Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death among youth ages 15 to 20. The rate of fatal crashes among alcohol- involved drivers between 16 and 20 years old is more than twice the rate for alcohol-involved drivers 21 and older.

Suicide Alcohol use interacts with conditions such as depression and stress to contribute to suicide, the third leading cause of death among people between the ages of 14 and 25. In one study, 37 percent of eighth grade females who drank heavily reported attempting suicide, compared with 11 percent who did not drink. alcohol

There is also one more point: is it possible to stop it somehow? Actually many people can advise only some medical treatment, and they are right, because its abnormal when a boy or a girl of 15 thinks that life is dreck and starts drinking all the time as if it can save him or her from something. They never think about how much they distress their relatives and friends.

Adolescence is the most important phase of growth for any individual and anything that affects the mental state can become a major cause for alcohol dependency as many of teens are highly sensitive and take things too personally.

So it is very important to keep the home environment positive for teens and lavish care upon them.

The End