Drinking age

The majority of countries have a minimum legal drinking age of 18. The most commonly known reason for the law behind the legal drinking age is the effect on the brain in adolescents. Since the brain is still maturing, alcohol can have a negative effect on the memory and long-term thinking. Alongside that, it can cause liver failure, and create a hormone imbalance in teens due to the constant changes and maturing of hormones during puberty. Some countries have a minimum legal drinking age of 19 to prevent the flow of alcoholic beverages in high schools, while others like the United States have a minimum legal purchasing age of 21 (except in P.R. and USVI, where the drinking age is 18) in an effort to reduce the amount of drunk driving rates among teenagers and young adults.