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Essay On Minimum Drinking Age

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The National Minimum Drinking Age Act was passed thirty-one years ago in July of 1984. Since then, it has been contested by many that the minimum age should be lowered to eighteen. Arguments ranging from being able to join the military, or courts trying you as an adult at the age of 18 have long been heard. Others will say the United States is too strict with the minimum age with only six percent of countries having a minimum age of twenty-one. This could mean one of two things: either we are too strict, or we are responsible with the laws created to protect young adults from the effects of alcohol. Alcohol can have many different physical effects on your body. Short term effects can include nausea, disorientation, slurred speech and dizziness. Anyone who has consumed alcohol in excess will also feel the effects the next morning, which is commonly referred to as a hangover. Alcohol will cause your body to urinate more, leading to dehydration. It will also cause your blood vessels to expand, which can lead to the headaches often associated with a hangover. These are also many long term effects of drinking, specifically related to adolescents. As stated by the American Medical Association "The …show more content…

Increased risk of heart disease, nerve damage, liver disease and even sexual performance issues. These issues are compounded with the amount of alcohol consumed and also the frequency of consumption. France and Italy both have a lower minimum drinking age than the U.S. and both have a higher death rate due to cirrhosis of the liver, which is primarily caused by alcohol consumption. The earlier an individual starts drinking will only further contribute to medical problems down the road. Although the science is constantly developed, and studies are still being conducted, one thing consistently being shown is the increased medical risk for

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If young Australian who are under the age of 21 are drinking alcohol, it is too soon, too much and too risky for them. Therefore, the legal drinking age in Australia should be 21 years of age. Something that many Australian have forgotten is that all Australian states had an age of 21 drinking law in the late 60s, and that law was reduced to 18. When the age was reduced, Australian actually started to experience the rising rates of youth alcohol problems and more deaths on the road. Alcohol can have toxic effects on young people 's body.

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It is evident that the National Minimum Drinking Age Act should be repealed because the law’s reasoning is flawed, eighteen is considered the age of adulthood, and a decreased drinking age will lessen teenagers’ dangerous drinking habits. Before the flaws in the National Minimum Drinking Age Act are exposed, it is necessary to understand details about the law’s history in addition to how it works. Legislators began pushing for a uniform drinking age after some states reduced their age of adulthood and drinking age in the wake of the Vietnam War, while others did not (NHTSA, 2001). The debate over when to allow Americans to drink became one of the most debated issues of the time period. Freshman Senator Frank Lautenberg of New Jersey led the

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Death rates are very high among Hispanic, lower among African Americans and the lowest among whites. In addition, Hispanics are among to highes related DUI death then African-American and Whites. While, non-Hispanic Whites have a increase in alcohol related disorders, Blacks and Hispanic have a higher alcohol related cirrhosis issues. Education - Underage drinking takes a huge toll on the body and on the mind especially for college students. Excessive absitine is more relevant with Hispanics and Blacks than in non-Hispanics; however, non-Hispanics have a higher

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First reason the drinking age should not be lowered to eighteen is because of the obvious health issues. The brain is still developing in an adolescent which not only makes them more vulnerable to the toxic effects of alcohol but can also cause irreversible brain damage. Neuroscientist Susan Tapert conducted a study and compared the brain scans of adolecesents that drank and the scans that didn’t drink, the drinkers “appeared to have a number of little dings throughout their brains ' white matter, indicating poor quality, and poor quality of the brain 's white matter indicates poor, inefficient communication between brain cells. ”(qtd. in Trudeau) Alcohol does the most damage to the frontal lobe which is part of the brain that is responsible for planning, forming ideas, using self control and making decisions.

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One con of lowering the drinking age is that it may interfere with the development of an young individual’s brain. Especially the frontal lobes, emotional regulation, planning, and also organization. When a young adult consumes alcohol it increases the potential of having chronic issues, like greater vulnerability to addiction. It also plays a role in depression, violence, and reduced decision making ability (Ives2008).

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Should the legal age for alcohol consumption be lowered? In the United States, The legal drinking age is 21, but in my research, I have found that it is actually allowed, under certain circumstances and situations, to people of even lower age. Though all 50 US states have set their minimum drinking age to 21, exceptions do exist on a state-by-state basis for consumption at home, under adult supervision, for medical necessity, and other reasons. In fact, all but 5 states, Alabama, Arkansas, Idaho, New Hampshire, and West Virginia, under age drinking is permitted. Parents are allowed to furnish alcohol to minors if they are under proper supervision.

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Should the U.S. Legal Drinking Age be lowered from 21 to 18 Years of Age? Alcohol is considered the drug of choice for many American youth. Statistics provide that there are more than 10.1 million underage drinkers in the U.S. with 85 percent of college students and 72 percent of 12 graders having tried alcohol. As a result, underage drinking contributes to death from injuries, increases the risk of sexual and physical assault, as well as playing a role in risky sexual behavior. However, there have been increasing debates over whether the minimum legal drinking age should be reduced from 21 years to 18 years.

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This law changed to 21 because all states would “lose a certain percentage of federal highway dollars” (“Frequently Asked”). Not only that but the rates of excessive drinking went up, along with drunk driving. Driving alone is hard enough, especially if the person is a new driver, but add alcohol and there is a very deadly mix. Being able to legally drink at the age of “21 decreased the number of fatal traffic accidents for 18- to 20-year-olds by 13% and saved approximately 27,052 lives from 1975-2008” (“Should the Drinking Age”). Since there have been less drunk driving accidents when the minimum age for drinking changed to 21, it is a safer environment if the drinking age is left at 21 instead of being

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Health issues for drinking can be a serious and damageable for you. Alcohol is like a poison that you are drinking. If drinking too much it might cause effects on your body including your heart or liver. Problems managing diabetes, high blood pressure and other conditions. The drinking causes many problems you must go the hospital.

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Responsibility is one of the keywords to remember when consuming alcohol. Anything could happen when you 're under the influence, death, rape, and many more life-altering occurrences. One huge potential life-altering thing that could happen to you is brain damage. Drinking at a younger age increases the risk of brain damage. This is the only potentially bad risk that comes with drinking, but if consumed responsibly it will be okay

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For example, some of these short term effects include temporary violence, risky behaviors that could lead to injury, slurred speech, and slow reflexes. Another example is the increase of blood flow to the skin surface, which gives off the appearance of being perpetually flushed. However, the riskiest short term consequence is impaired judgement, which can lead to many other negative repercussion. For example, driving intoxicated can lead to wrecks, resulting in injury or death. Finally, when those addicted to alcohol stop drinking, they often develop a headache, the inability to sleep well, nausea, trembling hands, and

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The drinking age should be lowered, because brains are not fully developed yet, colleges should be able to regulate drinking, and this can solve problems with kids underage drinking. Despite the controversy, the drinking age should decrease for many logical reasons. The drinking age has been a debate between the ages 18 to the age of 21 for a while now. Over the years, studies have showed favors toward the age of 21.

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One major thing is Alcohol poisoning from a hard night of drinking can cause you to overdose on alcohol and basically die.. Binge drinkers are one of the majorities that are affected from alcohol poisoning. Binge drinkers take in an excessive amount of alcohol in a short period of time and then maybe wait for a month and do it again in one night. Excessive drinking from teens can suffer from blackouts and cause them to forget things very easily. Teens that do regularly drink hardcore are shown to have bad testing scores in school and perform bad in school in general.

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The study went further to explain that underage drinking can be very detrimental to the youth,

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