Alcohol use has grown significantly among the youth ranging from adolescence through to young adulthood. The legal age for drinking alcohol in many global policies is between 18 and 21 years, and this is a period considered as the youth. Underage drinking is illegal and restricted in nearly all countries. However, it is still an epidemic and may go as low as 12 years (Osgood et al., 2013). Alcohol, in its many kinds and form, has become a big commercial product in today's beverage market. Many infomercials on alcohol have targeted the youth which has led to many young people getting into alcohol use and abuse. Even though alcohol consumption among the legal youth has become a norm, there is a wide range of effects.
Youth is a growth time that spans from adolescence to 35 years of age. It is the stage in a human being when the mind is still developing and is open to new knowledge. However, alcohol has been found to have toxins that raise the rate of brain damage bearing on neurocognitive impairments (Zeigler et al., 2005). The young are supposed to transition fully into adulthood, but heavy drinking of alcohol impairs the learning routines and erodes this process. The youth, like any other users, suffer from other alcoholic related ailments like liver diseases and nutrition impairments.
Save your time!
We can take care of your essay
- Proper editing and formatting
- Free revision, title page, and bibliography
- Flexible prices and money-back guarantee
Alcohol drinking has been found to have a social consequence in the lives of many young people. Those who drink alcohol mostly find it easy to make and maintain relations only with the peers who partake of the same. On the contrary, the social dynamics become very complicated to maneuver when party drink alcohol and the others do not. However, when alcohol is the primary piece to which people are related, it alienates them and forced into a narrow spectrum of social networking (Osgood et al., 2013). Alcohol addicted youth carry with them a certain stigma, and this plays an important role when it comes to making friends with others who do not.
Consumption of alcohol is an expensive behavior, even so among the youth. The most obvious cost comes from the purchase of drinks and the lifestyle, there are however a lot more expenses that are involved. Governments, families and non-government organizations spend a significant amount of money on campaigns against and on the treatment of alcoholism (Cook & Moore, 2002). The ratio of this money spent on the youth has increased with time indicating that more and more young people are feeling the effects of alcohol use. This money would have been used to make them have a better education system and a good future.
The adolescent and through the youth are a very turbulent time in an individual especially so when one starts to drink alcohol. It is a time which people get exposed to behaviors that risk their physical wellbeing. Alcohol use is a dominant cause of most of the sexually related diseases affecting the youth today. It impairs judgment and especially when it comes to life-threatening decision making (Zeigler et al., 2005). While some remember vaguely the day or time they contracted these diseases, those who were highly intoxicated on alcohol at the moment do not have an account of the event. Most young people who use other kinds of drugs confirms that they started with alcohol use. Moreover, anytime they drink, they find it alluring and inviting to do other drugs as well. Therefore, alcohol is an enabler to sexual and drug risks among the youth.
Alcohol use among the youth is a growing sensation and is increasingly becoming a socio-economic part of many societies. However, there are negative impacts related to alcoholism that touch on their physical and mental health as well as their status in society. These effects become extreme when one gets into alcohol addiction at a young age, sometimes even irreversible.
Stuck on your essay?
