Alcoholism is notorious among the human race. However it is especially notorious among teenagers. To them, it seems like a wonderful time, not knowing how detrimental it is to their actual health. To really understand alcohol use, you must take an in depth look on why teens use it. Some factors include, peer pressure, media interpretation, and curiosity. We have a foundation built on experimentation after all, and sometimes you must consume something to truly learn how harmful it can be.
High school is without a doubt a social battlefield, with everyone struggling to maintain a decent reputation or fit in with the standards set by their peers. One of the expectations happens to be drinking alcohol. Simply put, if everyone's doing it, you should too. An adult will not understand that saying no is difficult. An adult will not understand that saying no can condemn you to a very low social standing. To us teenagers, that can be a problem. Thus, we drink. We drink not because we remotely enjoy it, yet because maybe we doing this will help us get noticed by that cute girl, or propel us into popularity. Peer pressure is without a doubt a societal
menace spreading across high schools in the United States that cannot be so easily halted. When a teenager commits such a heinous act to society such as drinking, perhaps some forgiveness should be bestowed upon him given the fact that this is expected of him. We learn not by constant lectures, or criticism, but by the committing mistakes. Peer pressure is something we cannot escape, it is the reason some teens are consuming alcohol as I am
typing this essay, but those teens will also soon learn to say no.
Another important factor to consider is media interpretation ...
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...or her on the spot. He or she is dead and their family is distraught. No words can describe the anxiety and anguish you feel at that time. You will kick yourself over and over because you'll finally realize that those few drinks were not worth it. When reading this you might not think this could happen to you, however you couldn't be more wrong. It can happen to anyone.
Learning to say no is essential to us as teenagers. No matter how difficult it may seem to us, there is a way. You don't have to submit yourself to this menace. A
solution is always present; we have the gift of willpower. We must practice the gift of willpower to avoid letting alcohol ruin our lives. It is a menace, a plague, a need to some people. Human nature leaves us vulnerable sometimes. But practicing saying no can ensure our safety. It can ensure we survive this age of alcoholism.
“80 percent of teen-agers have tried alcohol, and that alcohol was a contributing factor in the top three causes of death among teens: accidents, homicide and suicide” (Underage, CNN.com pg 3). Students may use drinking as a form of socializing, but is it really as good as it seems? The tradition of drinking has developed into a kind of “culture” fixed in every level of the college student environment. Customs handed down through generations of college drinkers reinforce students' expectation that alcohol is a necessary ingredient for social success. These perceptions of drinking are the going to ruin the lives of the students because it will lead to the development alcoholism. College students who drink a lot, while in a college environment, will damage themselves mentally, physically, and socially later in life, because alcohol adversely affects the brain, the liver, and the drinkers behavior.
According to Andrew Herman, “Each year, 14,000 die from drinking too much. 600,000 are victims of alcohol related physical assault and 17,000 are a result of drunken driving deaths, many being innocent bystanders” (470). These massive numbers bring about an important realization: alcohol is a huge issue in America today. Although the problem is evident in Americans of all ages, the biggest issue is present in young adults and teens. In fact, teens begin to feel the effects of alcohol twice as fast as adults and are more likely to participate in “binge-drinking” (Sullivan 473). The problem is evident, but the solution may be simple. Although opponents argue lowering the drinking age could make alcohol available to some teens not mature enough to handle it, lowering the drinking age actually teaches responsibility and safety in young adults, maintains consistency in age laws, and diminishes temptation.
Although this article does show the magnitude of the problem of teenage drinking, it doers not touch many people or clarify what we can do about it and the lack of clarity is an important factor that limits its impact.
Using fear, while not aggressively, Silveri highlights the fact that excessive alcohol consumption is the third leading leading cause of preventable death. The author discusses this topic in a way that seems to be to scare anybody she is trying to convince. A mother reading this could worry about her daughter, or a young man in college who drinks often could take his drinking habits far more seriously after reading something like that. Also, ending the article on an optimistic note, she allows the reader to have some hope. Silveri mentions the reduction of maladaptive alcohol use through better recognition of the negative tendencies that comes with alcohol abuse in adolescents. (Adolescent Brain Development and Underage Drinking in the United States: Identifying Risks of Alcohol Use in College
Teenage alcohol abuse is one of the major problems that affect academic performance, cause health problems and is responsible for the death of teenage drivers and sometime their passengers. Many teens drink because they think it is cool and do not understand the dangers of drinking alcohol. In 2008 a survey on the students views on alcohol was conducted in the Atlanta Public School System of 4,241 students surveyed results showed 74% of sixth graders felt there was a health risk while 25% felt there was no health risk; 81% of eighth graders felt there was a health risk, while 19% felt there was none; 82% of tenth graders felt there was a health risk, while 18% felt there was none, and 84% of twelve graders felt there was a health risk, while 15% felt there was none. Given these results on average of all grades, 20% of the students surveyed were unaware of the dangers of alcohol use. If one calculates, using the formular of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (2003), “three teens are killed each day when they drink alcohol and drive. At least six more die every day from other alcohol-related causes” (table 79). The impact of this student population’s lack of knowledge equates to 49 of those students per week who most likely will die because they do not understand the dangers of alcohol.2
Alcohol abuse can be very dangerous because it can come at a time when a person is going through the bad times in their life. The only thing drugs do is worsens people’s lives because the behavior of the victim can change dramatically. Many drink at social events, to celebrate or relax. The problem is that many of the drinkers end up drinking more than what the body can withstand. According to the National institute on alcohol abuse and alcoholism (2014), alcohol enters the blood as soon as the first sip and affect the body in as early as ten minutes. The amount then increase depending on the amount of drinks and the effects range from impairment, breathing problems, slurred speech, and coma. Some can even experience death as a result of becoming intoxicated because of having too much alcohol in the bloodstream. National institute on alcohol abuse and alcoholism (2014). A young adult is more likely to experience a change in their mood and behavior because they are goi...
Alcohol dependence and alcohol abuse involve drinking patterns in which periods of heavy drinking followed with periods of abstinence. Alcohol generally has a suppressive effect on the central nervous system (CNS): It reduces the activity of excitatory neurotransmitters and enhances the activity of inhibitory neurotransmitters and thus their receptors. After long-term alcohol exposure, the body activates a set of mechanisms to counteract the effects of alcohol’s persistent presence in the brain. These mechanisms promote the activity of excitatory neurotransmitter systems and suppress the activity of inhibitory neurotransmitter systems, thereby attempting to return brain function to a “normal” state in the presence of alcohol. When the individual stops drinking, however, these adaptive changes result in an imbalance in inhibitory and excitatory neurotransmission, resulting in CNS hyperexcitability that produces as alcohol withdrawal (AW) symptoms. This essay will focus on the main inhibitory and excitatory neurotransmission systems and the symptoms produced in AW due to the imbalance in the brain. Followed by outlining other physiological changes alterations that are associated with AW.
A lot of the time, teens think it is ‘cool’ to drink because everyone else does it. Almost every television show that young people watch have some underage substance abuse, leading adolescents to believe that it can’t be that bad. While society plays a big part in this huge problem, both teens and parents need to learn that there can be severe consequences from as little as one drink. Allowing them to think this kind of behavior is acceptable will haunt them for the rest of their lives, even if they are not alcohol related. Believing that such behavior is acceptable now will lead them to bad decision-making skills in the future when faced with an ethical decision. Teens need to know the major effects can come from underage drinking before going to that party or when being pressured into something they may not be willing to participate in. It is obvious that the long and short-term effects of alcohol abuse can be easily avoided by getting educated and thinking before engaging in any self-destructive
“For every family that is impacted by drugs, there are another 10 to 15 families impacted by alcohol abuse. It's a pretty big deal. We have a tendency to only look at part of the puzzle.” (Kevin Lewis). As a society we tend to categorize the severity of addiction in a way that drugs are the most dangerous and alcohol being just a problem. Because alcohol addiction can be a slow progressive disease many people don’t see it in the same light as drug addiction. An addiction to drugs is seen as being a more deadly and dangerous issue then that of alcohol because a drug addiction can happen more quickly and can kill more quickly. Alcohol is something that is easy to obtain, something that is found at almost every restaurant. People with an alcohol addiction can not hide from alcohol as easy as a drug addict. Approximately 7 million Americans suffer from alcohol abuse and another 7 million suffer from alcoholism. (Haisong 6) The dangers of alcohol affect everyone from children with alcoholic parents, to teenagers who abuse alcohol, then to citizens who are terrorized by drunk drivers.
Drinking alcohol is associated with many adverse health problems in the short and long-term. These include cancer, stroke, heart disease, miscarriage, premature birth and unintentional injuries. Despite the fact that alcohol brings many negative impacts, many people still choose to drink and do not overcome their drinking habit. They have been successfully seduced by alcohol until drinking has become their addiction. However, some of them try to quit drinking, but they still cannot break the addiction. Basically, quitting alcohol is difficult and almost impossible for them because of brain-craving, lack of belief and support, and weak willpower.
About 1.3 million adults received treatment for an alcohol use disorder at a specialized facility just in 2013. According to the Proquest database, alcoholism is commonly referred to as the excessive consumption of alcoholic beverages. The world health organization estimates there are 140 million alcoholics worldwide. Alcoholism can lead to ca crashes, crimes, violence, abuse, reduced workplace activity and illness. Also according to centers for disease control and prevention, excessive alcohol use is the third leading lifestyle-related cause of death in America. This paper will examine the pro, con, and my viewpoint on whether or not alcoholism is caused by a lack of willpower or not.
Within hours of the discontinuation of consuming alcohol, withdrawal symptoms can occur. For some who have a mild alcohol disorder, this can range from headache, dizziness, and nausea within 12 hours, to those who are heavy drinkers for long periods of time or who drink heavily on a daily basis, that can have much more harmful effects such as seizures, delirium tremens (DTs), anxiety, shakiness, rapid heartbeat, fever, confusion, and hallucinations. For these heavy drinkers, it can be a life threatening situation, where medical attention is necessary.
There are a number of reasons why teenagers feel the urge to drink. Social environment, peer influence, stresses, and even factors such as media influence contribute to underage drinking. Peer pressure is as well known use among teens. Americans have a burning desire to be accepted and liked by their peers. Everyone wants to feel a sense of belonging. Many adolescents feel that they need to drink alcohol to gain this acceptance by the others around them. Stress is also another reason why teens may feel apt to drink alcohol. Stress causes teenagers to look for a quick escape from the problems, which they face, in their day-to-day lives. This quick escape can be found in the shape of a bottle. In the eyes of an underage drinker, alcohol is the cure to all problems, a way to forget all of stress and pressures that are facing them. They feel that it will numb their pain and continuing to use alcohol will result in maybe another problem, substance abuse.
Most people do not realize that alcohol is a drug that claims the lives of youth in college campuses across the world. In my case, it took the encounter with the ORL staff at UCLA for me to come to understanding that I am putting myself and those around me in danger through my risky drinking habits. With hours of self-reflection and the help of a cosmopolitan article called The Deadly Drinking Mistakes Smart Girls Make, I have found that there are several risks associated with alcohol that can put me at a quarrel with death. Even so, drinking does not always need to be deadly, and by keeping in mind the well-being of my fellow bruins and the skills mentioned in the article, I can find a balance between drinking for fun and drinking till death.
... Alcoholism is a serious problem in today's society. It is extremely important that the public, including the large groups of users and abusers of alcohol, gain as much knowledge as possible about the symptoms and effects of alcoholism if we ever want to see the reduction of statics involving fatalities, injuries, diseases caused from the use and abuse of alcohol. Education and realization of the effects alcoholism can have on the different aspects of a person's life are the best ways that we can help control the number of alcoholics in the United States.