Adolescent Development - Research Paper Example

Download file to see previous pages The study also reveals the homicide and the suicidal facts, which are associated with the underage drinking and alcohol abuse. The study further ascertains the beliefs of the Christian community. It has been ascertained that alcohol consumption is not off limit for the Christian community. Introduction Alcohol, in recent scenario, has become the favorite ‘drug of choice’ amidst the adolescents and youth. A major proportion of young people are immensely experiencing the adverse effects of drinking alcohol at an early age. This scenario has further resulted in bringing about health issues pertaining to underage drinking. In recent observations, it has been ascertained that around 5000 youths who are mainly under the age of 21 years died due to drinking in the year 2006 in the United States. Moreover, the statistics reveal that in 2006 in the US, out of 5000 deaths, about 1900 were caused due to accidents, 1600 due to homicide, 300 deaths were reported due to committing suicide as well as the rest suffered from severe diseases, which ultimately caused their death (NIH, 2006). Observational findings reveal that adolescents, who become addicted towards drinking alcohol, are likely to suffer from mental disorders. Various disorder problems, which the adolescents face, include mood disorder, anxiety disorder and the antisocial disorders (Clark & Bukstein, 1998). With these considerations, the study intends to discuss the adverse impacts of alcohol abuse on adolescent development. Furthermore, the study will also explore the origin of the issue, the statistics and facts along with figures to analyze the intensity of the damage caused by underage drinking and possible solutions to mitigate such adversity. Christian worldview regarding the issue also is a vital part of the study. Origin of the Issue Considering the issue of underage drinking, its origin mainly emerges with the advent of globalization. Correspondingly, in earlier period, drinking alcohol at the phase of adolescents was legally banned, which restricted the commoners from consumption. However, with the passing years and advent of modernization, the legal system in the nations such as US relieved the banned, which initiated the youth to indulge in alcohol drinking from a relatively tender age. Recent observations and survey reports have depicted that in the US the average allowed age for girl is 13 and that of boy is 11 years for consuming alcohol without any legal restrictions (NIH, 2013). With regard to the colonial times of the American society, drinking used to be a crucial part of the culture. It has been further noted that in late 1960s and early 1970s, many of the states had gradually lowered the minimum drinking age from 21 to 18 years. This scenario has laid an immense adverse effect on the youth. In terms of a crucial adverse impact, the traffic fatalities amidst the youth mainly increased due to alcoholic consumption while driving. Considering the matter seriously, in 1988, all the states adopted the minimum age for consumption of alcohol as 21 years. Nevertheless, underage consumption of alcohol remains an inherent and integrated problem, which lays greater impact on health consequences. In-spite of introducing laws and prevention programs, the rate of the underage consumption of alcohol has accelerated in the present scenario (NIH, 2013). Thus, it can be affirmed that the consumption of alcohol has remained a prevalent problem since ages, through it has contributed towards increasing ...Download file to see next pagesRead More