Alcohol

As a parent or concerned adult, there are things you can do that will reduce the risk to youth.
Set clear rules, expectations, and regulations involving alcohol.
Keep your message simple and don't waiver: underage alcohol use is not allowed.

top

No Chemical Use	No use of any type of chemical, i.e., nicotine or any alcohol.
Experimental Use	This is a learning stage of chemical use. A testing period; usually lasts no more than six months. How much of a chemical does what.
Social Use	Chemical use does not get out of control. No consequences. Does not break or violate personal values or beliefs. Social users do not break the law.
Abuse	Chemically abusive persons begin to have consequences. They use to the point of getting drunk or to get high. Begin to have legal charges such as DWI or DUI. Some people never move beyond this point; some go back to no use.
Chemcial Dependency	Have consequences in most areas of life: family, school, friends, legal, social/recreational, personal values, job, relationships Chemical use effects feelings and emotions Begin to have mood swings Begin to use to feel "normal" Increase in tolerance to the chemical used.
Addiction	The body begins to need the drug to function. Begin to have illness related to chemical used. Many drugs are addictive. Some following the first or second use; others take longer. There is increased, and at times decreased, tolerance.

A recent study has shown that brains of young, heavy drinkers are significantly affected by alcohol. Through MRI brain scans, it was revealed that teen-agers who drink heavily over a long period of time decrease their own brain development. The hippocampus, responsible for memory and learning, was found to be smaller by 10% than those teens that did not drink.

Through the teenage years, the brain is still going through strong stages of development, which is impaired by alcohol. If abuse is stopped however, negative affects are thought to be reversible.

For more information on alcohol and how it affects adolescent brain development, go to: www

CIVIL - Cause of Action - ZAP Bill
Expands civil liability to include cases of adult provision of alcohol to youth. Allows injured parties the right to sue the adult provider to recover damages. "A spouse, child, parent, guardian, employer or other person injured in person, property or means of support by an intoxicated person under 21...has for all damages sustained a right of action...against a person who is 21 years or older who:
1. Had control over the premises and...knowingly or recklessly permitted consumption of alcoholic beverages by a person under 21 that caused intoxication.
2. Sold, bartered, furnished or gave to, or purchased for a person under 21 alcoholic beverages that caused intoxication."

CRIMINAL - Kevin's Law - Brockway Bill
Increases criminal penalties on adult providers from a gross misdemeanor to a felony in certain cases. It is a felony, punishable by fines and/or jail time: "For a person other than a licensed retailer of alcoholic beverages...to sell, barter, furnish, or give alcoholic beverages to a person under 21 years of age if that person becomes intoxicated and causes or suffers death or great bodily harm."

NEW KEG REGISTRATION LAW (effective 8/1/2002)
Governor Ventura signed a law to get tough on adults who provide keg beer to underage drinkers. This new "keg registration" law requires alcohol retailers to label and record all beer keg sales made in Minnesota.

Wouldn't a lower drinking age allow parents to teach their kids to drink responsibly?

Parents don't have to drink with their children to teach them responsible drinking. Additionally, letting teens drink at home sends the wrong message about appropriate conduct away from home.

Don't kids binge because they haven't learned to drink when they're living at home?

This question assumes that binge drinking was less common when the legal drinking age was 18 or 19. That assumption is wrong—binge drinking by 12th graders has dropped by 15 percent since 21 was adopted as the national legal drinking age.

Kids are going to drink anyway. They always have. Isn't it better to hold the party at my house, so my kids and their friends aren't out driving?

It's not your decision to make. Letting other teens drink in your house undermines other parents, and in many states, violates the law. Drunk driving isn't the only danger associated with teen drinking, and you can't guarantee that your teen guests won't drive after they leave your house. Offer non-alcoholic choices rather than another drinking venue.

If the kids drink when I'm home, I can control what happens. Isn't that the best way to prevent teen injury?

Can you really control what happens? There are too many real stories about teens who are injured from drinking under adult supervision. Giving permission to drink at home also may be interpreted to mean that you approve if they drink with friends when you're not around.

The legal drinking age in Europe is younger than it is in the U.S. Why don't European kids have alcohol-related problems?

The concept that European teens start drinking at a young age without problems is a myth. A recent National Institutes of Health publication shows that European countries with lower drinking ages have the same teen drinking problems as the U.S., or worse.

I drank when I was a kid, and I'm okay, so what's the problem with letting teens drink now?

Good thing that you're okay, but many teens are not as lucky. On average, 6.4 American teens die each day from alcohol-related crashes. Teen drinking is associated with long-term alcohol dependence, increased sexual activity, unprotected sex, suicide, smoking, and carrying weapons; in addition, it imposes high financial costs on society.

I don't believe that the reduction in teen drinking and driving accidents since 1983 is entirely due to the minimum drinking age. There must be more to it.

Seat belt requirements, zero tolerance laws, increased enforcement, and frankly, increased public education and information on the dangers of teen drinking have contributed to the downturn in teen drinking and accidents. However, after careful study, the U.S. Department of Transportation concluded that the minimum drinking age law, by itself, has played an important role in reducing both teen drinking and driving after drinking.

Doesn't a "legal drinking age" just make alcohol "forbidden fruit" that teenagers try harder to get?

If this were true, teen drinking would have increased after adoption of the legal drinking age. It didn't. Having a legal drinking age has substantially reduced drinking by teens. In addition, the drinking habits of 18-year-olds have a big influence on younger teens, particularly those who are 15 to 17.

If kids can vote and join the military at 18, why do they have to wait until they're 21 to drink legally?

It's the law. In addition, ages of "initiation" vary. You can work at 14, vote at 18 and drink at 21, but you can't run for Congress until you're 25. Researchers who have evaluated the data say the minimum legal drinking age delays the onset of alcohol use. As a result, it reduces drinking-related injuries among teens and the risk of alcohol abuse and dependence later in life.