layman-underage+drinking

While there are many deviant acts going on in our society today a major one among young teens is underage drinking. Each year, about approximately 5,000 young people under the legal age die as a result of underage drinking. That number includes about In 2003, the average age of first use of alcohol was about 14, compared to about 17 1/2 in 1965. People who reported starting to drink before the age of 15 were four times more likely to also report meeting the criteria for alcohol dependence at some point in their lives (9). In fact, new research shows that the serious drinking problems (including what is called alcoholism) typically associated with middle age actually begin to appear much earlier, during young adulthood and even adolescence.
 * 1,900 deaths from motor vehicle crashes
 * 1,600 homicides
 * 300 suicide
 * -as well as hundreds from other injuries such as falls, burns, and drownings.

As children move from adolescence to young adulthood, they encounter dramatic physical, emotional, and lifestyle changes. Developmental transitions, such as puberty and increasing independence, have been associated with alcohol use. So in a sense, just being an adolescent may be a key risk factor not only for starting to drink but also for drinking dangerously.