2024-03-03 03:40:28
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34 minutes ago
I turned 18 the day before I left home for university. I was over the legal age to buy alcohol in Britain at the time. When I visited a doctor near my new home, he asked me how many units of alcohol I drink per week. In Britain 1.5 units is roughly equivalent to a small glass of wine. I answered roughly “seven”.
“The number will continue to rise,” he replied with a laugh. “I know that heavy alcohol consumption can have lifelong effects. But I don’t think my youth carries any additional risks compared to someone in their 30s, 40s, or 50s. Are the risks of alcohol the same for all adults?”
If I had known beforehand what I know now about how alcohol can affect the adolescent brain, I would have been a little more cautious. Drinking alcohol at a young age can have long-term effects on our cognitive development.
When I spoke to researchers about the effects of alcohol on youth, I was surprised by what I learned about it. Europeans have healthier drinking habits than Britain or the US.
And allowing young people to drink alcohol with food at home teaches them to drink responsibly. But being aware of the problems alcohol can cause can help parents decide how to handle alcohol in their home.
Alcohol reaches the brain
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Alcohol is a poison. It causes liver disease and many types of cancer. “When it comes to alcohol consumption, there is no such thing as a safe amount that does not affect health,” says the World Health Center.
Many countries have certain restrictions to limit the harms of alcohol consumption. In the US it is defined as no more than two drinks per day for men and no more than one drink per day for women. Many countries provide similar guidance.
Although beer and wine are generally considered safe drinks, according to US guidelines, it’s the amount of alcohol in the drink rather than the type that’s the problem. “A 12-ounce beer has the same amount of alcohol as a five-ounce glass of wine or a 1.5-ounce glass of liquor.” In most European countries, the minimum age to purchase alcohol is 18. In the US it is 21.
However, there are many reasons why alcohol is so dangerous for teenagers. Adolescents do not reach their adult height until age 21, and even after they stop growing taller, they may not have attained the physique of a 30- or 40-year-old.
“Drinking a glass of wine results in more alcohol in the blood in young people than in adults,” says Rut Rudbein, a postdoctoral researcher at Maastricht University who is investigating raising the minimum drinking age.
Adolescent thinness is also a reason for this. When you drink alcohol, it enters your bloodstream and spreads throughout your body. Within five minutes it reaches your brain and easily passes the barrier that normally protects your brain from harmful substances.
“When young people drink alcohol, a lot of it reaches their brains. This is another reason why young people get alcohol poisoning,” Rudbein says.
‘lead to bad behaviour’
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Changes in the skull should also be noted. In the past, it was thought that neural development stops in our teenage years. But according to recent research, the adolescent brain undergoes a complex reprogramming that doesn’t end until at least age 25.
One of the most important effects of alcohol, he says, is the reduction of gray tissue, called “gray matter,” when the brain prunes the synapses that allow one cell to communicate with another.
The limbic system, which is associated with behavior and feelings in the brain, is the first to mature. The frontal area behind the forehead, called the prefrontal cortex, develops at a slower rate. This area deals with emotional regulation, decision-making and self-control.
A comparison of development in these two regions may explain why adolescents and young adults are at greater risk than adults. In particular, for excitable teenagers, alcohol can create a cycle of bad behavior and crime.
“That is, adolescents with high impulsivity tend to drink more, and then drinking leads to more impulsivity,” says Lindsey Scuglia, a neuropsychologist at the University of South Carolina.
Adolescent alcohol use can affect long-term development. Several studies indicate that early alcoholism is associated with a more rapid decline in gray matter. At the same time, the growth of white tissue is also inhibited,” he says.
Effects on cognitive tests are not immediately apparent; In the adolescent brain, areas responsible for problem solving may work a little harder to compensate for the deficit. However, this does not last forever. “After years of alcoholism, we see less activity in the brain and worse performance,” says Scuglia.
Early alcoholism can also affect mental health. and increases the risk of alcohol abuse later in life. It is more common in people who have a family history of alcoholism.
Is European Alcoholism Healthy?
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How might these findings affect an adolescent’s choices? What should parents decide about how and when to allow drinking at home?
“You should start drinking as late as possible because your brain is still developing during adolescence. Make sure your brain is as healthy as possible before you start drinking,” he says.
Whether this advice should be enshrined in law is another matter. Scuglia says that when he talks about alcohol consumption in public, the “European model of alcoholism” is questioned. In some countries, such as France, minors are allowed to have a glass of wine or beer with a family meal.
Even outside of Europe, many parents believe that slowly introducing alcohol in a controlled environment teaches young people to drink alcohol safely and reduces later binge drinking.
This is a myth. “Research indicates that the more permissive a parent is about alcohol use, the more likely a child is to have alcohol problems later in life,” says Scuglia. “Parental imposition of strict rules regarding alcohol consumption during adolescence is significantly associated with alcoholism and related risky behaviors,” says one study.
Consider the study by Alexander Ahmar at the Johannes Kepler University Linz in Austria. People over the age of 16 can legally buy beer or wine there. If stricter laws only increase the desire to drink, you’d expect Austria to have a healthier alcoholism than the United States. The minimum legal drinking age there is 21. But that doesn’t matter.
Image credit: Javier Hirschfeld/BBC/Getty Images
In both countries alcohol consumption is high after one crosses the minimum age. “But this figure was 25% higher at age 16 in Austria than at age 21 in the US,” says Alexander Ahmar.
A slightly higher legal drinking age for Americans seemed to encourage more responsible behavior when allowed to purchase alcoholic beverages.
“When alcohol becomes legal, teenagers are at much less risk than before,” Ahmar says. At age 16, such a false sense of security can be dangerous, while at age 21, the more mature brain has become somewhat better at handling alcohol.
It is not entirely true that European alcohol consumption is healthy. According to the World Health Organization, data indicate that moderate alcohol consumption accounts for most of the alcohol-related cancers in the European region.
Should governments set the legal minimum age at 25 or higher, based on scientific evidence? Experts point out that this is not so simple, as public health interests must be balanced against people’s notions of personal freedom.
“At some point people have to be allowed to make their own decisions,” Ahmar agrees.
James McKillop, who studies drug addiction at McMaster University in Hamilton, suggests better educating adolescents about the dangers of alcohol and its effects on the brain.
I still drink alcohol today, knowing the long-term health risks. But these might make me think twice before buying a round of extra liquor.
*David Robson is an award-winning science writer. His next book, The Laws of Connection: The Transformative Science of Being Social, will be published in June 2024 by Canongate (UK) and Pegasus Books (US & Canada).
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