Less Drinking Age

Of all the rights one obtains when becoming a legal adult at the age of 18, such as the ability to get married and vote for our country’s leaders, drinking is not one of those rights. The 1984 National Minimum Drinking Age Act led all fifty states to change their drinking ages to 21. Since then, drinking statistics have shown that less people are becoming alcoholics, and drinking alcohol in general. It also affords three extra years of driving experience to teens before they can drink, because despite the fact that it is illegal to drink and drive, those three years can be important in the decision making process of someone debating if they are safe to drive. It is odd however that this right, out of all rights provided by the government at

According to the CDC fact sheet regarding the legal drinking age, after all states adopted an age of 21 as their minimum legal drinking age, drinking during the previous month among people from age 18 to 20 years old declined from 59% in 1985 to 40% in 1991. The fact sheet also states that drinking among people age 21 to 25 also declined when states adopted the age 21 year old minimum legal drinking age, from 70% in 1985 to 56% in 1991. These statistics are significant due to the large decreases in the percentages of people drinking. This indicates that the law is effectively lowering the rates of teens and adults alike that are drinking. Less drinking overall has been a general goal of the government for a long time, and this minimal legal drinking age is helping make that a

To put it quite simply, alcohol can have a plethora of negative effects on the body. Motor skills can be seriously impaired under the influence of alcohol. Which is why drinking and driving is illegal, as a driver’s physical and mental focus needs to be on driving for the safety of him or her self and others. This is also a reason to not drink, because people are far more likely to hurt themselves when they are impaired physically. According to the CDC fact sheet regarding the legal drinking age, states that increased the legal drinking age to 21 saw a 16% median decline in total motor vehicle crashes. Such a decrease indicates that alcohol was negatively affecting drivers, which shows just how severe the effects of alcohol can be. The significance of this statistic is not that the amount of drunk driving went down, but the total amount of car crashes in America decreased from 46,087 crashes in 1986, to 39,251 crashes in 1991, showing more conclusive evidence for the need of a legal drinking age of 21 (fhwa). As stated on the consumer information for the Federal Trade Commission website, “Alcohol consumption can interfere with development of the young adult brain 's frontal lobes, essential for functions such as emotional regulation, planning, and organization. When alcohol consumption interferes with this early adult brain development, the potential for chronic problems