High School Drinking - Research Paper Example

(Assignment) Underage Drinking Many people are ignorant about or are negligent to the rising levels of alcohol consumption among youth, particularly teenagers. According to reports, the number of young individuals who try alcohol for the first time, on a given day, is about 11,318 in the US; a number too big to be set aside. According to social scientists, the problems associated with alcohol abuse at this early age are plenty. It seems that alcohol affects the lives of adolescents in multiple ways.

Firstly, it affects their proper physical and mental development. Secondly, it impairs their cognition making them unable to control their own thinking and emotions, thus making them engage in various anti-social activities. The problems discussed here range from road accidents, academic problems, substance use, delinquency, employment problems in future, date rape, and family problems. It is evident that consumption of alcohol affects the lives of students in various ways and reduces their academic achievement through various mechanisms.

The first issue is the impact of alcohol on brain. The short term bad effects of alcohol range from difficulty walking, blurred vision, slurred speech, slowed reaction times, and impaired memory. For students, the most important point is the impairment in memory caused by alcohol. It is reported in a study (cited in National Institute on Alcohol Abuse And Alcoholism) among 772 college undergraduates that 51% students who drink feel blacking out and being not able to remember the things they did at some point in their lives.

In addition to this loss of memory that will have a huge impact on the academic performance, there is the finding that alcohol can damage the brain areas responsible for learning and memory, verbal skills, and visual-spatial cognition. Thus, a 2000 National Survey on Drug Use and Health found that the rise in alcohol use among 12 to 17 year olds is indirectly proportional to their grade point averages (The Alcohol Cost Calculator for Kids). Another serious problem is the rise in antisocial behavior among the teenagers who drink.

It is found in studies that the ones who drink are more likely to skip their classes, and are more likely to permanently drop out. However, things turn worse when these drunkards become anti-social. It is pointed out that alcohol related crime in youth is on rise. In a study, 50% of the respondents reported that they engaged in fighting, violence and aggression due to the influence of alcohol; says Lucy Ward in guardian.co.uk. According to the Institute of Alcohol Studies Fact Sheet, the percentage of youth who engaged in any offence due to binge drinking in a year period is 23, which is about 4 times higher than the normal percentage.

Another point of consideration is the fact that the possibility of adolescents engaging in unprotected sex considerably rises after drinking. According to guardian report, “drinking to get drunk is starting at a younger age…prompting children not yet into their teens to become involved in violence, vandalism, and sexual risk” (Ward). One in seven adolescent binge drinkers admit that they had unprotected sex due to drinking. While 20% of them later regretted, 10% of them were unable to recollect their activities under the influence of alcohol. 4. (Binge drinking- medical and social consequences (Institute of Alcohol Studies Fact Sheet).

Some other issues of consideration are the rising levels of road accidents and higher possibility of drug abuse in later life. Thus, in total, it becomes evident that the adverse effects of alcohol on high school students are multifaceted. First of all, it affects the physical and mental functioning of an individual. Then, it impairs the social relations of the individual, leading to a total destruction of the future of the students. Works Cited “Alcohol Alert”. National Institute on Alcohol Abuse And Alcoholism.

Web 8 June 2011 “Binge drinking- medical and social consequences”. Institute of Alcohol Studies Fact Sheet. Web 8 June 2011 “Problems Drinking Affects School Performance”. The Alcohol Cost Calculator for Kids. Web 8 June 2011 Ward, Lucy. “Binge Drinking Fuels Youth Violence”. guardian.co.uk , 23 January, 2008. Web 8 June 2011