Underage drinking

[Name of the Student]

[Name of the Teacher]

[Name of the Subject]

April 23 , 2008

A Summary of the Article : Underage Drinking

The article from the Human Relations Media begins with an explanation of how there are many confusing messages about alcohol that are available today for teenagers in the country . There are messages that entice young people to drink and others that ask them to stay away from drinking Since teenagers are at a sensitive stage of development , the contrasting messages can become confusing and can lead to various

dangers . The first five pages of the article discuss the motivations for use of alcohol by teenagers , the relevant laws on underage drinking , the risks involved in taking alcohol , and the relationship of drinking to what is called teen brain drain

One of the main reasons why teenagers drink is so they could be in on the crowd . Many teenagers see drinking as a way to make friends and be involved in social activities . Teenagers who drink are usually the same teenagers who are popular on campus such as cheerleaders or varsity players . Hence , teenage drinking becomes associated with being cool and so teenagers become attracted to it . The National Institute on Alcohol abuse and Alcoholism reveal some shocking statistics such as that 20 of eight graders and 80 of high school seniors drink , and that 25 of all the alcohol sold in the U .S . are drunk by minors . Adults usually drink to ease work stress or socialize during important events but teenagers usually drink just to get drunk and so teenagers have a greater tendency to drink excessively

The law makes it illegal for people who are under 21 to buy or drink alcohol but a lot of teenagers challenge this law and try to get around it by using fake I .D .s or buying smuggled goods . These actions are themselves illegal and the teenagers can be arrested for committing them . Such arrests on minors can have severe impacts on the arrested youths ' personalities . What is worse is that such arrests lead to permanent records that can reflect back on the teenager later on in life

Drinking alcohol has many dangers especially for teenagers . Teenagers who do not live to see 20 often have alcohol as part of the causes of their deaths . Many kids who drink at parties end up in car crashes or get drowned in pools . Females who drink excessively often become victims of sexual assault and rape . In 67 of homicide cases committed by people under 20 , the suspect was reported to have been drinking before or during the incident . Those who drink excessively in parties also often end up having multiple sexual partners and engaging in unprotected sex thereby increasing the risk for them to catch STDs . Lastly , drinking in itself can be a killer . Excessive drinking can cause a person to go into a coma and die

Lastly , latest scientific developments are able to relate teenage drinking to permanent brain damage...