Drinking wine and other alcoholic beverages had been, is, and always will be part of our culture. It is part of our maturity as a people that drinking is not abused. While there are programs to address alcoholism and alcoholic abuses, there is a lack of an educational campaign to shape the next generation into responsible alcohol users. After all, alcohol use by teenagers happens because of adults since they can’t get alcohol on their own. This is proven by the various under age drinking statistics released by both government and non-government organizations. Here are some relevant figures for you to digest:
70 – The percentage among teens in America who have had at least one alcoholic drink by the time they reach 18.[i] Drinking incidents among young people increase as they grow older. Around 10 percent of 12 year olds admit to drinking at least once. That number is doubled as they grow a year older. And by age 15, half of them have had at least one drink.
6.9 Million – The number of 12-20 year olds (18%) who have engaged in binge drinking and 2.1 million (6%) in heavy drinking. This is according to one of the most comprehensive under age drinking statistics 2010 Monitoring the Future Study.[ii]
42 – The percentage among high school students who said they drank alcohol, based on the Under Age Drinking Statistics 2009 Youth Risk Behavior Survey[iii]. These are the other figures: 24% admitted to binge drinking; 10% drove while drank; and 28% of them rode with a drunk driver.
44 – The percentage of 12th graders in America who drank during the past month. This is based on the 2009 Monitoring the Future Survey, but 72% of them admitted to having tried alcohol at least once.
80 – The percentage among teens between 12 – 20 years old who drink alcohol say they drink in a social setting. They were with two or more people the last time they drank. This is based on the results of SAMHSA’s National Survey on Drug Use and Health[iv].
5 – The number of drinks teens usually have on a single occasion, a pattern referred to as binge drinking. They drink less often, but when they do, they drank more than adults.
12.5 million – The approximate number of underage teens who drink each year.
19.8 Billion – the amount in total sales from alcohol drank to underage drinkers in 2005. This constitutes 15 percent of alcohol sold in the United States.
42 – The percentage of all fatal vehicular accidents due to alcohol attributed to underage drinking.
5 – The number of times young people are more likely to become alcoholics once they start drinking before age 15 years than those who do after age 21 years.
In general, underage drinking statistics reveal that alcohol use by people below 21 years is a public health problem. Three important factors to consider when developing a generation of responsible drinkers: access to alcohol, binge drinking, and drunk driving.
[i] U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Surgeon General. (2007). The Surgeon General’s Call to Action To Prevent and Reduce Underage Drinking: A Guide for Families (PDF 900KB)
[iv] Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (2008). Underage Alcohol Use: Findings from the 2002-2006 National Surveys on Drug Use and Health.
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