Drinking Age Research Paper

Alcohol is one of the many causes of death in America. According to an article provided by www.niaaa.nih.gov, alcohol misuse is the fifth leading risk factor for premature death and disability. Among people between the ages of 15 and 49, it is the first leading risk factor. In the age group of 20–39 years, approximately 25 percent of the total deaths are alcohol attributable. The drinking age in America is 21, it can be argued by some that the drinking age should be lowered to 18. Reasonably thinking the drinking age should stay the same because of the following epidemics that already occur in today’s society with the drinking age being as it is: alcohol related deaths, lowering the age would be unsafe, and violent or destructive behavior is
caused by alcohol. “Underage drinking is a leading contributor to death from injuries, which are the main cause of death for people under the age of 21. Each year, approximately 5,000 persons under the age of 21 die from causes related to underage drinking. These deaths include about 1,600 homicides and 300 suicides,” as stated in an article provided by report.nih.gov. Alcohol has the power to kill anyone. New federal statistics show last year, more than 30,700 Americans died from alcohol-induced causes, including alcohol poisoning and cirrhosis. Alcohol is a very dangerous drug that is slowly on the rise every year.
If the drinking age was to be lowered millions of teenagers around the country would be subjected to personal alcohol abuse. Underage drinkers tend to binge drink more than any other age of drinkers. Underage drinking is also associated with future alcohol dependence, so if the age was to be lowered teenagers would begin to form a dependency on alcohol earlier than needed. An additional point is, the brain is still developing at age 18. “Alcohol consumption can interfere with development of the young adult brain's frontal lobes, essential for functions such as emotional regulation, planning, and organization. When alcohol consumption interferes with this early adult brain development, the potential for chronic problems such as greater vulnerability to addiction, dangerous risk-taking behavior, reduced decision-making ability, memory loss, depression, violence, and suicide is greater,” as stated by the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC), "Dangers of Teen Drinking," dontserveteens.gov (accessed Oct. 20, 2010). Those are only a couple reasons why lowering the alcohol consumption age is unsafe.
Alcohol use has the ability to turn someone into an abusive or violent person the more they use it.
A research from http://hrlibrary.umn.edu states that a consumption of alcohol can increase the user’s sense of personal power and domination over others. An increased sense of power and control can, in turn, make it more likely that an abuser will attempt to exercise that power and control over another. Whatever a person’s point of view is on alcohol causing violence, it has been studied and proven alcohol has an effect on the human brain. Humans sometimes do not have the ability to control their emotions when they are drinking. Professor McMurran, a psychologist at the University of Nottingham says, “Alcohol causes chemical changes in the brain which can initially make you feel relaxed, which can be one of the reasons we enjoy drinking. But, according to Professor McMurran, anxiety actually protects us by telling us to avoid or escape certain situations. "When we're drunk, this warning system doesn't work and this can put us in dangerous or confrontational situations."
The way we process information is affected when we've been drinking too. We're more likely to misinterpret other people's behavior and misread social cues. This could be the reason why so many drunken fights start over little more than a 'dirty look'. This is why alcohol changes human behavior causing acts of
violence.
In a conclusion, the legal drinking age should not be lowered due to how dangerous it already is to society.
The percentage of deaths caused by alcohol only is 25 percent. Alcohol is already proven as a fatality for persons aged 21 and up, imagine if there was the 18-year-old age group added to the rate of those fatalities all over the country. The rate would be dramatically increased because younger people drink more. 10.1 million people are underage drinkers in America. The drinking age should stay at 21 years because the brain is not fully developed yet which can cause problematics to the brain through the final stage of its completion due to alcohol use. Alcohol violence comes in the shape of family, friends, loved ones, and associates when they are under the influence of alcohol. No matter how nice a person is, when they are under the influence, they are not the same person as they are when sober. The drinking age needs to stay at 21 for health and well-being
concerns.