Harmful effects of alcohol on the brain Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Harmful effects of alcohol on the brain - Essay Example To make the matter worse, the concern with drinking today becomes even more complex due to the fact that instances of under-age drinking are rapidly rising, thus increasing reported occurrences of brain damage on teenagers. Jennifer Sheridan in her article â€Å"Booze Putting Teen Brains at Risk† further discussed the dangers of under-age drinking. By presenting facts based from the studies and researches she conducted, Sheridan corroborated the high possibility of acquiring brain injury, especially for teenagers who are supposed to be undergoing various brain developmental processes, from drinking too much and/or consuming alcohol during sustained period (Sheridan, 2009). Without appropriate measures to resolve or, at least, minimize, problem with under-age drinking, the young generation’s likelihood to reach their full potential will be curtailed, hence impeding the bright future that awaits them. Alcohol poses as serious threat to the health and well being of the pop ulation at our community. Some of the health risks of consuming alcohol include, those who begin drinking before the age of 15 are four times more likely to develop alcohol related dependence than those who do not drink until they are 21. They have a higher risk of developing cirrhosis of the liver, strokes, pancreatitis, and multiple forms of cancer. Early alcohol consumption takes a toll on youths mentally too. According to the US Department of Health and Human Services, an individuals brain continues to develop throughout adolescence, therefore those who drink, may have serious side affects with the functions of their short-term and long term memory. They are more likely to suffer from depression, drop out of school because of a reduced ability to learn and carry out normal brain activity. Alcohol consumed by teenagers is hazardous, not only due to the dangers linked with acute impairment, but also due to the problems that drinking brings to their long-term development and welfar e (Sheridan, 2009). From the reports all over the world, the society has witnessed how underage drinking can cause accidents in the road, violence at school, suicide cases, academic failures, and other behavioral concerns brought by underage alcohol consumption. The question is how these teenagers manage to get access to alcoholic beverages despite of the law that prohibits selling of alcohol to youths below 21 years old. According to Bonnie, O’Connell, and National Research Council (2004), teenagers get their access to alcohols from adults. A report shows that more than 90 percent of students from the 12th grade consider getting alcohol â€Å"very easy† or â€Å"fairly easy† (Bonnie, O’Connell, and National Research Council, 2004). Significantly, these young individuals who are not legally allowed to get access to alcoholic beverages are more reckless drinkers than the adults. On average, these teenagers drink more than what their bodies can take and the refore categorizing them as heavy drinkers (Bonnie, O’Connell, and National Research Council, 2004), or drinking until they black out (Sheridan, 2009). In 2004, a report from the National Survey on Drugs Use and Health stated that there were about 29 percent of young Americans, or approximately 10.8 million young individuals), specifically within the age range of 12-20, who had at least a drink a month prior to the report conducted by the organization (Bonnie, O’Connell, and National Research Council, 2004). Still within this age group, the report further stated that 19.6 percent of these subjects were categorized as binge drinkers, or those who had 5 or more drinks on one occasion, which is considered more than the average American adult can consume. In a study conducted by D’Amico et. al. (2001), they discovered that the start of alcohol