heir CausesAlcohol abuse is one of the biggest drug problems and issues facing America’s youth today. Teen alcoholism is a one of the main issues concerning almost all communities, families and schools in America today. There are three main reasons that can lead a teenager to drink alcohol without taking into consideration its causes. Stress, peer pressure and media are these reasons.
. The first reason teens drink is because of stress. Nowadays, teens are under tremendous stress such as school and family. For example, School stress can be caused by trying to fit in and consequently being accepted by their peers. Another reason for their stress can be attributed to bad grades. Family stress can come from families being divorced.
The constant fighting or arguing in the home could make it uncomfortable for teens and in order to handle these situations, these teens turn to alcohol. Alcohol helps them escape from these problems. In addition, alcohol makes teens feel good and happy, which gives them a break from their problems. They feel that the only way for them to escape is the bottle. Therefore, they drink because it helps them escape from reality or cope with stress that can be very cruel for some teens.
The second reason teens drink is due to peer pressure. Peer pressure can especially be seen in parties where mostly everyone drinks. This creates pressure on the teen because if he or she does not drink, the teen would become an outsider and consequently, they drink to belong. Many times, teens drink at parties to be accepted by the others. For example, teens would drink beer at parties and pretend that they like it even when they do not like the taste of it.
They have the beer to be in the right crowd. The third reason for teens to alcohol abuse is the media and poor labeling. In today’s advertisements, whether they are on billboards or on television commercials, portray a message that can create confusion. The message that they are trying to get across is that drinking make everyone cool like the people on the commercial. Media gives the message that happy, important and beautiful people drink and that if one does not drink; he or she is not cool. Poor labeling also leads to alcohol abuse among teenagers.
Many teens cannot distinguish alcohol from nonalcoholic beverages because they can appear similar on store shelves. For example, stores keep their sparkling water next to the wine cooler. Alcohol causes various health problems among young people and can lead to serious health consequences. Alcohol can cause aches and pains to be lessened therefore illnesses may go undetected because the symptoms have disappeared. Also, It can cause students to be absent from school frequently. However, this a small cause compared to the others which can include date rape, violence which can lead to even death.
Alcohol causes a persons judgment and reflexes to slow down. One of the most common scenarios is in driving. Drinking and driving is the number one killer in America. A person may also do things he would not normally do because his ability to reason may be reduced.
In conclusion alcohol affects many teenagers’ lives as well as their future. Too many teens are currently drinking and alcoholism is on the rise. The disease is spreading and something must be done to solve this problem. Schools, churches as well as the alcohol industry must work together to solve this problem. They must create a curriculum which will teach teenagers to resist alcohol.“Say no to alcohol drink!” .
