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It is up to us to put pressure on our elected officials to get their federal hands out of a state’s business and let people make up their own minds. 5. The current drinking age causes bad drinking habits. It Would Encourage Illicit Drugs Use. The minimum drinking age continues to stir controvers. The drinking age was first lowered to 18 in many states back in the Vietnam War era. Kids younger than 13 also begin drinking at higher rates in areas where the drinking age is lower. 14. 6. 9. Many times all it takes is a parent’s permission as long as the teen is on their parent’s property. Dave Anderson-January 27, 2016. The biggest argument for lowering the drinking age is that drinking should simply be a basic right for an adult, which includes 18-year-olds. In 29 states in the US, drinking is allowed at the age of 18 as long as it occurs on private premises and is done with parental permission. 18. This is all fine and well for the average population but the military population is not average. The idea is that kids learn to drive before they are old enough to go to the pub ... and hopefully concentrate on driving safely and effectively before their legal drinking begins. A 2009 study published in The Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs found that between 1998 and 2005, the number of cases of alcohol poisoning deaths among 18- … An assessmentonly conference is a very traditional, didactic, teacher centred, expositionbased approach to conversation, this represents an elaboration or help sessions. For the safety of young adults and those who exist around them, the minimum drinking age in the United States should be lowered to 18. Others have even made the “educational” consumption of alcohol legal. Underage drinking will occur no matter what the legal drinking age is, and lowering the drinking age to 18 will ultimately lead to safer consumption habits for young adults. They will, however, have the chance to have their parents teach them what it means to drink alcohol responsibly. Despite the fact that people are considered adults at this age, they are unable to do certain things, such as being able to legally drink. If 18 is the age for legal adulthood in every other way, it should be for drinking, too. If 18-year-olds have just started drinking, a disproportionate number will die from drunk driving. 6; Decreased drinking. Is this a coincidence? Give easier access to alcohol. Among drinkers only, 32% of under age compared to 24% of legal age are heavy drinkers. CTRL + SPACE for auto-complete. Besides – if kids get behind the car while having a drink, they’re more likely to have an accident. With the legal drinking age being 21, there are 3 years that a person is an adult where they have certain activities restricted, which may be considered a restriction of a right. Some might say that there are other graduated rights that are introduced, so drinking is just in this same grouping. Traffic accidents and fatalities due to drinking come from new drinkers of any age. Although there would be increases in the 18-20 age demographic in these statistics, these would be offset by reductions in the older age groups. Filed Under: Medical Articles and Infographics, © 2021 HealthResearchFunding.org - Privacy Policy, 14 Hysterectomy for Fibroids Pros and Cons, 12 Pros and Cons of the Da Vinci Robotic Surgery, 14 Pros and Cons of the Cataract Surgery Multifocal Lens, 11 Pros and Cons of Monovision Cataract Surgery. Why, with these repeating news stories of teen drunk driving incidents and the endless list of drunk driving accident statistics, do people still possess the desire to lower the legal drinking age to 18? Nearly half of students report that they throw up after drinking. 10. If we can allow these exceptions and not pull federal funding because of it, then why can’t we do the same thing for the 18-20 age demographic? People acquire their legal rights once they reach the age of 18, apart from drinking. Most kids have their driver's license at 17. If we want to get serious about kid’s health, which is why we have the higher drinking age, then we need to do something about the heavy drinking issue. 10% of federal highway funding is directly tied into the drinking age that states have allowed. If two states can have marijuana for recreational purposes legalized, then why can’t we change the drinking age to 18, 19, or 20? Anything is possible, but the data seems to speak for itself. In a 2002 meta-study of the legal drinking age and health and social problems, 72% of the studies that were reviewed found that there was no statistically significant relationship to the age of drinking and increased criminal behaviors or suicides despite claims that lowering the drinking age to 18 would increase them. The National Minimum Drinking Age Act is logical in theory, but in practice, it proves harmful and confusing for young adults at a point of critical transition in their lives. Will there be a potential increase in drunk driving accidents in the 18-20 age demographic? [ 38] Here’s a radical idea: why not lower the legal drinking age to 6? It only seems to make sense. Should the drinking age be lowered below 21? There is no evidence that a 21 drinking age reduces accidents. Lowering the drinking age would result in more public drinking, making it easier for law enforcement … A peer-reviewed study from the Journal of Studies of Alcohol and Drugs found that the younger a person begins to drink alcohol the more likely it is that they will use other illicit drugs. 3. 29 states already allow underage drinking on private premises if it is with parental consent. Underage drinking accounts for 17.5%, or $22.5 billion, of consumer spending for alcohol in the United States. Drunk driving is a blight on our civilization. The current drinking age has become a sort of modern prohibition against legal adults aged 18-20. States that increased the legal drinking age to 21 saw a 16% median decline in motor vehicle crashes. Forget the fact that the federal government is holding states hostage to a 21 only drinking age for a moment. Another 11 states allow underage drinking if it is for educational purposes. 11. 12. A quarter of students are missing classes at least once because of hangovers. 18 Is The Legal Age Of Majority In All Other Aspects Of Life. In 2009 data, the age group with the highest percentage of drivers with an illegal blood alcohol content level was the 21-24 age demographic. Drinking isn’t the only right that comes at 21 in the US. This suggests that the real risk factor for drinking and driving is being an inexperienced drinker, regardless of age. Lowering the federal drinking age to 18 would have had the same effect of eliminating the reason to travel to legally drink. That’s the age at which young people become adults. Someone can join the military and die defending their country, but they can’t legally have a beer. The National Minimum Drinking Age Act of 1984 helped raise the minimum drinking age from 18 to 21 in all fifty states. Why the legal drinking age should be lowered to 18 Lower drinking age would allow for increased education, greater safety among young people, college students American eighteen-year-olds can drive, smoke, vote, get married, and go to … Lower the drinking age to 18 or scrap it altogether and leave it to the parents to teach responsibility to their children. An estimated two of every 1,000 occasions of illegal drinking by youth under 21 results in an arrest, showing that it isn’t a high police priority to enforce the law. It’s already legal in many areas of the United States for those under the age of 21 to legally drink. Raising the drinking age may have reduced deaths among people 18-20 but resulted in more deaths among people 21-24. As the argument goes, if an 18 year old is old enough to vote, drive, smoke, have sex, and serve in the military, why should they be prohibited from drinking. 0. In the United States and most countries around the world, the legal age of majority is 18. Dr. Elizabeth M. Whelan. As seen in the picture above, the vast majority of countries in the world allow for drinking at 18 years old or even younger. With the drinking age lowered from 21 to 18, students in middle school and high school will have easy access to alcohol. 15. Traffic accidents and fatalities are most common among newly-legal drinkers, regardless of the drinking age. Drinking affects the frontal lobe of the brain and lowering the drinking age could put the 18-20 age demographic at risk for chronic mental health problems. After all states adopted an age 21 MLDA, drinking during the previous month among persons aged 18 to 20 years declined from 59% in 1985 to 40% in 1991. The states all uniformly have set the drinking age at 21 for a variety of reasons with the majority being that the maturity of an 18-year-old is questionable and drinking and driving accidents were reduced when the drinking age was raised to 21. Heavy drinking is binge drinking on more than five occasions in the past month, and 13.1 percent of 18- to 20-year-olds admitted to that. … These societies also see lower abuse rates of alcohol. Having alcohol is just the same thing, right? By 1982, when drunk driving fatality statistics began to decrease, only 14 states still had a 21 only law on the books. 1. Many law enforcement agencies consider enforcing the drinking age a low priority due to limited resources. Since the 21 only law was enacted, kids are missing school more often because of alcohol as well. 4. Alcohol consumption by young adults has demonstrable and serious costs: for example, a lower drinking age leads to more traffic fatalities. Most likely there will be. A 2007 report published by the non-profit organization Common Sense for Drug Policy stated, “Every year in the U.S. an average of 85,000 people die due to excessive alcohol consumption.” 25 states allow for underage drinking if it is done for legal purposes. Tag: drinking age should be lowered to 18 statistics. 7. Many states already allow underage drinking to occur. It would increase the rates of binge drinking and intoxication. However, being a … As countries with lower drinking ages have already proven, however, there is also a corresponding decrease in the accident rates in the 20-24 age demographic. Also, there are more young people at the age of 13, in Europe, who are already binge drinking, which is why it is only right that the drinking age is lowered in these places. Lower the Legal Drinking Age Interview with Dr. Ruth Engs. Posted on February 24, 2016 For decades, ever since the days of Prohibition, in fact, many politicians, academics, and parents alike have engaged in the drinking age debate – the question being whether or not the legal drinking age of 21 should be lowered to 18? I believe that the drinking age should be lowered back to 18, but with adult supervision. The human body continue to develop through the rest of the teenage years, especially from a mental standpoint. 17. A small amount of wine with a meal is common in societies that are outside of the United States. 13. It’s clear that the current system of prohibition is not working. State and local governments are responsible for enforcing the Act. 3 Pros of Lowering the Drinking Age to 18. Here comes another answer to why should drinking age should … Most states of the US have set their age … 4. The fact is that underage drinking occurs more often as binge drinking than in any other group. An American 18-year-old can legally work, marry, vote, rent and join the military. A 1995 study published in the Public Health Report found that only two of approximately every 1,000 occasions of illegal drinking resulted in arrests. In 29 states in the US, drinking is allowed at the age of 18 as long as it occurs on private premises and is done with parental permission. It was in place for over 40 years until the Supreme Court ruled that it was a violation of the Equal Protection Clause provided for in the 14th Amendment. Drunk Driving. 7 There are some advantages and disadvantages to the idea of doing this, however, so the subject must be completely evaluated before action is taken. Whether lowering the drinking age from 21 to 18 would help in solving the problem of alcohol abuse has been a question of interest for this past week’s PLA sophomore class. The drinking age ensures that most of us start … Lowering the drinking age to 18: smart or foolish? It is clear that the drinking age should remain 21. 28% of high school students admit to missing at least one class over the course of a year because they have a hangover. There are fewer drunk driving traffic accidents and fatalities in many countries with a minimum drinking age of 18. It has been constantly argued that the fact that the drinking age is 21 is the cause of various alcohol-related accidents including death. You can’t run to be the President of the United States until age 35. 1 The country was asking thousands of its young men to fight and die for their country on foreign soil, so the popular thinking was, "How can we ask them to die for their country and not let them have a drink if they want one? My colleagues at the Harvard School of Public Health, where I studied preventive medicine, deserve praise for their study on teenage drinking. Top 10 Reasons The Drinking Age Should Be Lowered To 18. The percentage of kids who cut class so that they can go drinking: 12%. Gambling in a casino, adopting a child, or even purchasing a handgun can’t be done in most areas at the age of 18. 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