Average Alcohol Consumption

Average Alcohol Consumption

Many young adults across America are challenged with the social pressures to drink. How they react can shape their entire lives, and show true character. Kids are known for experimenting in their high school and college ages with drinking, but some can get into some real trouble, and others just can’t kick the habit when they are forced to face the "real world." Either way it is apart of the growing up experience, weather they choose to drink, or not to.

So why do young adults drink, even though it is illegal for them in high school? Many answered that they drank socially in their mid high school years, but when they were even younger it was to get drunk, or buzzed. Only one person answered that they drank it for the taste.

The drinking age in some places are as low as 16, but here in Minnesota is the age of 21. Even though it is illegal, an overwhelming 98% of the students who answered (who are between the ages of 16-25) said that they drank before the age of 21. With 66% of the students between the ages of 14-18 which are the ages you are in high school. Many felt pressured into drinking, or just saw others doing it and accepted that it is okay, so they tried it too, but didn’t necessarily make a habit out of it. Just over 55% of students said that the never drank alcohol regularly in high school, they only tried it. However the remaining 45% of students consumed alcohol at least every couple of months.

Once those students started college, the percentage completely flipped, with 55% of students drinking regularly, and the remaining 45% being split between never drinking and drinking once a month. Also, more women, rather then men were willing to admit their drinking habits, and they were less likely to be drinking more than once every couple of months. Men were more likely to drink at least once a week, or once a month.

Most students are drinking for social purposes but only 42% of them answered that they care that their friends drink, that being that they choose their friends around it, and the remaining students didn’t care at all if their friends drank.

There are a lot of stories on the news, and journals in magazines that are written about students and alcohol abuse at young ages. They say that there is a wide spread problem among Americas young adults with binge drinking and over consumption on general. Scholars believe that kids are out drinking all the time, every weekend and that this develops problems academically, and starting to drink young can change the likelihood of becoming addicted to alcohol. However, if you actually speak with the students, both high school age, and college age, they will tell you that it is not a big part of their lives and that they choose not to drink, or drink only once in awhile.

Most of what we hear seems to be the news exaggerating a few instances of students not being able to control themselves, and binge drinking. In reality it is not as big of an issue as they seem to make it out to be.