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legal drinking age The legal drinking age is the minimum age at which a person can legally consume alcoholic beverages. The minimum age alcohol can be legally consumed can be different from the age when it can be purchased in some countries. These laws vary between ...
varies from country to country. In the United States, the legal drinking age is currently 21. To curb excessive alcohol consumption by younger persons, instead of raising the drinking age other countries have raised the prices of alcohol beverages and have encouraged the general public to drink less. Setting a legal drinking age of 21 is designed to discourage reckless alcohol consumption by youth, limiting consumption to those who are more mature, who can be expected to make reasonable and wise decisions when it comes to drinking.


History behind alcohol consumption

Fermented alcoholic beverages contain ethanol (C2H5OH), a consumable member of the
alcohol Alcohol most commonly refers to: * Alcohol (chemistry), an organic compound in which a hydroxyl group is bound to a carbon atom * Alcohol (drug), an intoxicant found in alcoholic drinks Alcohol may also refer to: Chemicals * Ethanol, one of sev ...
class of chemical compounds, often simply called "alcohol." These beverages are legal in most countries.Boffeta, Paolo, and Garfinkel, Lawrence. "Alcohol drinking and mortality among men enrolled in an American Cancer Society prospective study" ''Epidemiology'' 1990; 1, 342-348. " ource 21 Currently, alcohol such as red wine is used as a "greeter" at social gatherings and gaming entertainment, as relief from exhaustion in hard labor, as an
analgesic An analgesic drug, also called simply an analgesic (American English), analgaesic (British English), pain reliever, or painkiller, is any member of the group of drugs used to achieve relief from pain (that is, analgesia or pain management). It i ...
for pain, and to reduce risk of coronary artery disease. 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 (known as the Minimum Legal Drinking Age of 21, or MLDA-21). In 1984, the United States Congress passed the
National Minimum Drinking Age Act The National Minimum Drinking Age Act of 1984 () was passed by the United States Congress and was later signed into law by President Ronald Reagan on July 17, 1984. The act would punish any state that allowed persons under 21 years to purchase a ...
(NMDAA), which penalized any state which allowed persons under the age of 21 to purchase
alcoholic beverages An alcoholic beverage (also called an alcoholic drink, adult beverage, or a drink) is a drink that contains ethanol, a type of alcohol that acts as a drug and is produced by fermentation of grains, fruits, or other sources of sugar. The cons ...
by reducing that state's annual federal highway apportionment. In 1985, South Dakota challenged the NMDAA, but in 1987 the Supreme Court ruled the Act was constitutional for the purchase of alcoholic beverages. Nevertheless, the Court indicated that the States still had the right to set their own drinking ages. Despite this, the Federal Government can assess a 10% penalty on highway funds for states which choose to set their drinking age lower than 21. Less than a year after the Supreme Court ruling, all 50 states of the United States officially made 21 the minimum
legal drinking age The legal drinking age is the minimum age at which a person can legally consume alcoholic beverages. The minimum age alcohol can be legally consumed can be different from the age when it can be purchased in some countries. These laws vary between ...
.Searles, J. S..The Minimum Legal Drinking Age: A Data-Based Perspective. Vermont Department of Health.
Source 4
", February 8, 2011
Motor vehicle accidents decreased after the legal drinking age was raised, but the MLDA-21 is not the only variable which can be identified as a reason for the declining accident rate. The shift in demographics, increased enforcement, increased seat belt use, safer cars, increased parental monitoring, and "designated driver" emphasis are also factors that are likely to have played a part in lowering the vehicle accident rate in the U.S.


Epidemiology

Alcohol is the most commonly used and abused drug among youth in the United States, more than
tobacco Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus ''Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the chie ...
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 Alcohol dependence is a previous (DSM-IV and ICD-10) psychiatric diagnosis in which an individual is physically or psychologically dependent upon alcohol (also chemically known as ethanol). In 2013, it was reclassified as alcohol use disorder ...
or
abuse Abuse is the improper usage or treatment of a thing, often to unfairly or improperly gain benefit. Abuse can come in many forms, such as: physical or verbal maltreatment, injury, assault, violation, rape, unjust practices, crimes, or other t ...
in the past year, more than 13 million had started using alcohol before age 21. Since 1984, when the
National Minimum Drinking Age Act The National Minimum Drinking Age Act of 1984 () was passed by the United States Congress and was later signed into law by President Ronald Reagan on July 17, 1984. The act would punish any state that allowed persons under 21 years to purchase a ...
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.Flewelling, RL., Paschall, MJ., & Ringwalt, C. (2004). The epidemiology of underage drinking in the united states: an overview. National Academy of Sciences,
Source 1
March 24, 2011
Across all ages, the 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 The United States is a highly developed mixed-market economy and has the world's largest nominal GDP and net wealth. It has the second-largest by purchasing power parity (PPP) behind China. It has the world's seventh-highest per capita GD ...
loses hundreds of billions of dollars from lost productivity and earnings with alcohol-related illness being a primary factor. The most dangerous
social problem A social issue is a problem that affects many people within a society. It is a group of common problems in present-day society and ones that many people strive to solve. It is often the consequence of factors extending beyond an individual's cont ...
involved in
underage drinking The legal drinking age is the minimum age at which a person can legally consume alcoholic beverages. The minimum age alcohol can be legally consumed can be different from the age when it can be purchased in some countries. These laws vary between ...
is
driving under the influence Driving under the influence (DUI)—also called driving while impaired, impaired driving, driving while intoxicated (DWI), drunk driving, operating while intoxicated (OWI), operating under the influence (OUI), operating vehicle under the infl ...
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 tax Alcohol laws are laws in relation to the manufacture, use, being under the influence of and sale of alcohol (also known formally as ethanol) or alcoholic beverages that contains ethanol. Common alcoholic beverages include beer, wine, (hard) c ...
es 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 In medicine, confusion is the quality or state of being bewildered or unclear. The term "acute mental confusion"
, and augmentation.Dunlap, M. P. (n.d.). Biological Impacts Of Alcohol Use: An Overview.
Source 14
, March 14, 2011
An adult is legally considered the age of 18, right to vote, contractual capacity, and financial responsibility.Brown, SA, McGue, M, Maggs, J, Schulenberg, J, & Hingson, R. (2008). Underage alcohol use: summary of developmental processes and mechanisms: ages 16-20. National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, 32(1).

, March 14, 2011
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 (10–15) after they were given a dose of alcohol that would cause intoxication in adults.Windle, M, Spear, LP, Fuligni, AJ, Angold, A, & Brown, JD. (2009). Transitions into underage and problem drinking: summary of developmental processes and mechanisms: ages 10-15. National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, 32(1).

, March 20, 2011
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 Carbohydrate metabolism is the whole of the biochemical processes responsible for the metabolic formation, breakdown, and interconversion of carbohydrates in living organisms. Carbohydrates are central to many essential metabolic pathways. P ...
and results in low blood sugar. This could be fatal for
diabetics Diabetes, also known as diabetes mellitus, is a group of metabolic disorders characterized by a high blood sugar level (hyperglycemia) over a prolonged period of time. Symptoms often include frequent urination, increased thirst and increased a ...
. 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 The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA ) is an agency of the U.S. federal government, part of the Department of Transportation. It describes its mission as "Save lives, prevent injuries, reduce vehicle-related crashes" rel ...
spokeswoman Evelyn Avant believes that lowering the drinking age would lead to even more alcohol use among young people. Many people say they would not 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.


References

2010s controversies in the United States Alcohol law in the United States United States {{Alcohol and health