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Abstract
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Adolescence is a critical period in life during which individuals develop the capabilities for realising their full potential and achieving healthy fulfilling lives. Adolescence is also a vulnerable time, one that can be marked by the initiation of harmful health behaviours. Regular alcohol use, binge drinking, and other risk-taking behaviours, such as smoking and substance use, can emerge during adolescence.
Alcohol has been identified as the leading risk factor for death and disability among people aged 15–24 years by the Global Burden of Diseases Study. In the USA, in 2015, the National Survey on Drug Use and Health reported that 20% of people aged 12–20 years consumed alcohol and 13% reported binge drinking in the past 30 days. Early initiation of alcohol use is a powerful predictor of later alcohol use. There is evidence that high alcohol consumption in adolescence continues into adulthood and is associated with alcohol-related harm, including dependence. Young people who start drinking before age 15 years are six times more likely to develop alcohol dependence or excessive use later in life than are those who begin drinking at or after age 21 years. Reducing drinking during adolescence is important for preventing the long-term consequences of alcohol use, as well as for protecting against its immediate harmful consequences.
In several countries, governments have put in place prevention strategies that address factors associated with youth drinking—eg, policies restricting access to alcohol, enforcement of minimum legal drinking age laws, alcohol excise taxes, national media campaigns, and reducing youth exposure to alcohol advertising. But in many settings, parents provide alcohol to their teenagers with the belief that early exposure will reduce the risks of heavy drinking and alcohol-related harms...
Language: en |