Drinking Age Should Be Lowered | Teen Ink

Drinking Age Should Be Lowered

May 18, 2008
By Anonymous

People use alcohol for numerous reasons; peer pressure, celebration, anxiety, sadness, boredom, rebellion and insomnia are just a few. Teens fall under the category of “people”. The legal drinking age is currently twenty-one, but illegally drinking age is as low as zero. Why? Is the main question asked. I can assure you the under age drinking age percentage would drop if the age is lowered.

Few reasons for teens drinking are: peer pressure, enjoyment, etc. But the main reason for doing so is “breaking the law.” 87% of high school seniors have used alcohol. That means that a large quantity of teens under the age of seventeen to eighteen have used alcohol before. We all know why teens drink, I mean is common since. Just the feel that they get of breaking the law is huge. Being rebel and not following the rules is an important role of a teen’s life. Consequences are the one that change them, but we don’t want them to experience the consequences of being under the influence of alcohol because we know them and they are fatal. Dying in a car accident and killing others is a mess that we don’t want to clean.

Despite the fact that is illegal for young teens to purchase it, they are able to get it through their parent’s own liquor cabinets, unscrupulous store clerks, or older friends who purchase it for them. As we all see, is not hard for teens to obtain alcohol. Why not lower the drinking age then? I mean any way you put it, they are getting it.

We have all heard of the famous saying “we want you to join the military and protect your country.” Blah blah blah. Well, you are telling me that I can legally kill someone at the age of eighteen, while I sign up with the military and go to war but I can’t have a sip of alcohol. Due to this none senseless situation, age should be equaled. In other words, if voting and military sign up is eighteen, then drinking should also be eighteen. Besides at the age of eighteen you are legally an adult. Why can’t we drink then?

Drinking age in Australia is eighteen, and in UK is as low as sixteen in restaurants. Studies have showed that those teens/adults are perfectly fine. In fact, Dr. Ruth Engs; professor of Applied Health Sciences at Indiana University in Bloomington, uses this examples to propose the following: “……the drinking age be lowered to about 18 or 19 and permit those of legal age to consume in socially controlled environment such as restaurants and official school and university functions” (direct quote from Dr. Engs).

Drinking age should be lowered, and I know that by lowering it we can drop the percentage of reckless teen alcohol abusers. It is worth trying it , and if everything goes the opposite then change the law once more (which is done lots of times, for dumb reasons) and raise the drinking age back to twenty-one. Changes are always good (most of the times), and I know this one in particular is an excellent one.


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This article has 740 comments.


VellaVanilla said...
on May. 3 2019 at 3:07 pm
VellaVanilla, Berkeley, California
0 articles 0 photos 57 comments
I think it should be lolwred to the age of 18 bevcause when yourd at age 18 bevauswe when you turn 1q8 yhlou make your own lkifgew chnoivcedsz

on Jan. 10 2019 at 1:27 pm
TheCheeseHead, Seattle, Washington
0 articles 0 photos 15 comments
We Drink, It's Ok. One time jerry got high

on Jan. 10 2019 at 1:27 pm
TheCheeseHead, Seattle, Washington
0 articles 0 photos 15 comments
We Drink, It's Ok. One time jerry got high

on Jan. 10 2019 at 1:27 pm
TheCheeseHead, Seattle, Washington
0 articles 0 photos 15 comments
We Drink, It's Ok. One time jerry got high

on Jan. 10 2019 at 1:27 pm
TheCheeseHead, Seattle, Washington
0 articles 0 photos 15 comments
We Drink, It's Ok. One time jerry got high

on Jan. 10 2019 at 1:27 pm
TheCheeseHead, Seattle, Washington
0 articles 0 photos 15 comments
We Drink, It's Ok. One time jerry got high

on Jan. 10 2019 at 1:27 pm
TheCheeseHead, Seattle, Washington
0 articles 0 photos 15 comments
We Drink, It's Ok. One time jerry got high

on Jan. 10 2019 at 1:27 pm
TheCheeseHead, Seattle, Washington
0 articles 0 photos 15 comments
We Drink, It's Ok. One time jerry got high

on Jan. 10 2019 at 1:27 pm
TheCheeseHead, Seattle, Washington
0 articles 0 photos 15 comments
We Drink, It's Ok. One time jerry got high

on Jan. 10 2019 at 1:27 pm
TheCheeseHead, Seattle, Washington
0 articles 0 photos 15 comments
We Drink, It's Ok. One time jerry got high

on Jan. 10 2019 at 1:27 pm
TheCheeseHead, Seattle, Washington
0 articles 0 photos 15 comments
We Drink, It's Ok. One time jerry got high

on Jan. 10 2019 at 1:27 pm
TheCheeseHead, Seattle, Washington
0 articles 0 photos 15 comments
We Drink, It's Ok. One time jerry got high

on Jan. 10 2019 at 1:27 pm
TheCheeseHead, Seattle, Washington
0 articles 0 photos 15 comments
We Drink, It's Ok. One time jerry got high

on Jan. 10 2019 at 1:27 pm
TheCheeseHead, Seattle, Washington
0 articles 0 photos 15 comments
We Drink, It's Ok. One time jerry got high

on Jan. 10 2019 at 1:27 pm
TheCheeseHead, Seattle, Washington
0 articles 0 photos 15 comments
We Drink, It's Ok. One time jerry got high

avocado said...
on Oct. 14 2018 at 1:34 pm
avocado, Ithaca, New York
0 articles 0 photos 2 comments
I agree that the drinking age should be lowered. While it may seem smart to have a high drinking age of 21 so that consumers of alcohol are more "mature" and "grown up", people will find ways of obtaining alcohol before they are 21. The people who want to consume alcohol will find a way to obtain alcohol despite the age limitation placed on them for buying alcohol. Statistics show that many high school students have already consumed alcohol, which means they in some way got alcohol from a third party. Keeping the drinking age at 21 only offers an excitement and desire for alcohol because it is something they can drink in a couple years and it makes alcohol come off as something they are anticipating. It creates the "I can't wait until I'm 21 so I can drink" idea that many teenagers have. However, if alcohol was something that was available to them, they may not find it as interesting because teenagers are rebellious and there is a certain thrill to doing things they are not allowed to do. Besides, many other countries have lower drinking ages than the US and do not have a problem with it. While some may think that users are more mature and responsible when they first consume alcohol at 21, I disagree. There should be more education about the dangers of alcohol and the effects of it. Drinking at 18 versus 21 will not have a large impact on how a person is drinking alcohol safely, so to prevent criminal activity and the idea of alcohol as something they have to wait for makes teenagers desire alcohol more.

on May. 3 2018 at 12:54 pm
MahatmaGhanji BRONZE, West Des Moines, Iowa
2 articles 0 photos 2 comments
Agreed. Limitations on alcohol consumption have, in the past, only proven to cause more problems while not actually decreasing the amount of alcohol consumed. We saw it during prohibition that when you have a demand and no supply someone (usually a criminal organization) will always step in to provide it, thereby increasing the amount of criminal activity while not affecting the consumption whatsoever.

Aye_gigi_ said...
on Mar. 14 2018 at 9:40 am
Aye_gigi_,
0 articles 0 photos 1 comment
I completely agree with you this is true and I can tell you put a lot of thought on this

on Jan. 16 2018 at 3:07 pm
yvng.maria SILVER, Sacramento, California
6 articles 0 photos 2 comments

Favorite Quote:
''live life to the fullest because you never know your its gonna end''

i agree with you have strong point and if teen want to drink nothing is going to stop them doesn't matter is alcohol is legal or not.

on Nov. 30 2017 at 2:27 pm
stokionebeezy,
0 articles 0 photos 1 comment
pretty good article points out some good reasons and ultimately teens will drink no matter what you can get it whenever you need it.