The Effects of Alcohol on a Growing Brain

The Effects of Alcohol on a Growing Brain 

By: Lucas Codispoti - YMCA Arlington - Washington-Lee 

Alcohol has been around for millennia and the drinking age is very different around the world. Many including Bill Patron Priyanka Mathur, Tuckahoe YMCA, believe the drinking age should be raised up to 25 years of age; four years higher than the current law in the U.S. The leading argument is that the prefrontal cortex of the brain continues to develop up until around the age of 25/26 (Sturmhöfel). During someone's childhood and up until years before 25/26, the plasticity of the brain is much greater than later in someone's life when they are older. This means that during a person’s childhood and adolescence, the neurological pathways of the brain are still forming. As a result of this, when toxic chemicals like alcohol are introduced into the body, the effects it has on the brain can result in permanent damage that can affect someone throughout the rest of their life. 

 

Although many people are in support of raising the legal drinking and purchasing age to 25, there is still a large percent of the population who would like it to remain at 21. The counter argument is that it is a bad idea because the consumption of alcohol is an ideal that is ingrained so deeply within society. When asked on her views, Schuyler Workmaster, YMCA Arlington - O’Connell, replied with: “Around the world the legal drinking age is much lower, as low as 18 or even 16. The rate of binge drinking is much lower as well. Those countries are examples of how if someone is exposed to alcohol at an earlier age, they are more accustomed to it and tend to be more responsible when drinking.” Whether or not the legal drinking and purchasing age should be raised or not, a very divided Senate allowed for a very well thought out debate. 

 References 

Hiller-Sturmhöfel, Susanne. “Alcohol’s Effects on the Adolescent Brain—What Can Be Learned From Animal Models.” Alcohol Research & Health, https://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/arh284/213-221.htm