Preview

Persuasive Essay On Minimum Drinking Age

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
706 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Persuasive Essay On Minimum Drinking Age
Minimum Drinking Age
According to the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, in 2010 underage drinkers from ages 15-20 were responsible for 48.8% of alcohol purchases. The minimum legal drinking age(MLDA) in the United States was 18 years old until 1984, when all fifty states raised their legal drinking age to 21 or older. The drinking age should be lowered from 21 years old to 18 years old because at that age one legally becomes an adult, it would reduce the amount of unsafe drinking activity, and there are fewer drunk driving car accidents in many other countries with a drinking age of 18.
In the United States at the age of eighteen you receive the rights and responsibilities of adulthood. As an adult you should be able to make your own decisions on drinking alcohol. You can vote, smoke cigarettes, serve on juries, get married, sign contracts, be prosecuted as adults, and join the military. It is known that alcohol consumption can interfere with development of the young adult brain's
…show more content…
In the United Kingdom, only 15.88% of car accidents are related to drunk driving. In stating this, you can’t really say that having a drinking age of 18 reduces the amount of drunk driving accidents. Plus, deaths from drunk driving as a percentage of total driving fatalities have gradually decreased since 1982, two years before MLDA 21 went into effect. Since this decline came across all age groups, it cannot be because of the introduction of MLDA 21. In a 2002 meta-study of the legal drinking age and health and social problems, 72% of the studies found no statistics that related to an increase in suicide and criminal activities by adolescents if the drinking age were to be lowered to eighteen. Raising the drinking age has been ineffective thus

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Pros Of Lowering Age

    • 255 Words
    • 2 Pages

    According to the NHTSA, the National Traffic Highway Safety Administration, in 2010 the drunk driving fatalities accounted for 32% of all traffic deaths. That means on average someone is killed in an alcohol-impaired driving crash about every 50 minutes in the U.S.…

    • 255 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    The first issue needing to be dealt with is why the drinking age is set at 21. The American Medical Association (AMA) published the article “Facts About Youth and Alcohol,” which gives a brief history of the drinking age in the United States. The article states that after prohibition, the drinking age was set to 21 in most states. However between 1970 and 1975, as the minimum age for freedoms, such as voting, were lowered, 29 states lowered the minimum legal drinking age (MLDA) as well (1). Because not all states had a drinking age of 18, many young adults would cross state lines in order to be of legal drinking age, therefore causing a spike in alcohol related accidents among young adults. Because of the accidents advocacy groups, such as Mothers Against Drunk Driving (M.A.D.D.), began pressuring states to…

    • 1551 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    21 is the correct age since it would reduce the number of underage drinkers. The percentage of underage drinkers has decreased since 1984 when most MLDA 21 laws came into effect. Newly-legal drinkers often purchase alcohol for their underage peers, creating a "trickle-down" effect. Young adults 18 and younger are known for being irresponsible, so in result those who are 18 are more likely to buy alcohol for high school students and younger kids in middle school. This would cause an issues since the earlier someone starts drinking, the more addictive it can become. In a 2002 meta-study, 87% of the analyses found higher legal drinking ages associated with lower alcohol consumption("Drinking Age…

    • 594 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Good Morning, the issue I have chosen is if we should raise the drinking age to 21.…

    • 477 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    People say the lowering the drinking age would be irresponsible because of the dangers posed by drinking. In 2002, studies have shown that there is little to no evidence that mild or moderate drinking harms the developing brain. MLDA 21 is not statistically associated with lower rates of suicide, homicide, or vandalism (The drinking age debate). It would reduce the number of alcohol-related injuries or accidents due to fear of legal consequences if they sought medical attention (Top pro and con arguments). The drinking age is not statistically associated with traffic accidents.…

    • 420 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    The statistics show that there are fewer drunk driving accidents and deaths in other countries that have their legal drinking age at 18. The United States increased the drinking age to 21 in 1984,but the rate of traffic accidents and deaths in the 1980s were less than that of all the other countries whose legal drinking ages were over…

    • 482 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    As a teen I have been told that drinking is a privilege and I can wait till I am Twenty-one to drink. Being told it is a privilege many teens can't wait to start so they do it anyway. If we lowered the drinking age to just let them have what they want then this could lead to younger children wanting to drink too. Little kids look up to their older siblings as a mentor, and if they see them drinking and causing destruction then they would want to too. Not only would little kids want to drink, it could cause their older siblings to be more violent to the little ones. Over time if people see little kids drinking would we just cut the drinking age and let everyone drink if they want. Take this into mind, if you have kids and your oldest is walking…

    • 166 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    One of the largest reasons for lowering the legal drinking age to 18 years of age is the fact that at the age of 18 you are considered an and take on lots of responsibilities. At 18 years of age you are judged mature enough to…

    • 571 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Another source decided to look into what the results were in New Zealand when they decided to lower their country’s drinking age to 18 in 1999. NPR.org says in the article, “The review also looked at drinking habits in other countries, paying special attention to New Zealand, which lowered its drinking age from 20 to 18 in 1999. Several studies found a spike in alcohol-related car crashes and increased drinking there among still under age 16 and 17 year-olds.”(1) It truly doesn’t matter if a lower drinking age will stop people from drinking underage and driving with the law being 21. People who choose to drink underage get a ride instead of driving while intoxicated. This is also important to show you because once again it didn’t change for the good in those countries it crashes of kids who were even underage which is why it should stay 21 because it is saving…

    • 842 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In their pamphlet and website, the National Youth Rights Association claims that United States should lower the drinking age from 21 to a younger age. They claim that at the age of 18, youth are able vote, serve their country and fly airplane. Therefore, they should be able to drink as well, since it is has less responsibility associated with it.…

    • 440 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Drinking Age Should Be 18

    • 709 Words
    • 3 Pages

    According to ProCon.org in 2016, did you know that traffic accidents related to drinking are most common to new drinkers regardless of the minimum legal drinking age (MLDA)? Or, that in countries with the MLDA 18, there is a huge decrease in drunk driving accidents than in the USA? I believe that you can drink responsibly at eighteen; therefore, the drinking age should be lowered to eighteen. I believe the MLDA should be eighteen because when you are considered an adult and have many other responsibilities, the MLDA 21 is highly ineffective, and lowering the age would diminish the thrill of breaking the law.…

    • 709 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    If somebody wants to drink alcohol they will find a way to drink, a drinking age isn't going to stop them. There is no evidence to show that age 21 drinking laws help protect youth.Allowing people to drink at a young age, would teach the younger generation moderation and how to drink responsibly. Drinking responsibly is very important and it could potentially save lives. The truth about the MLDA is it doesn't stop underage drinking so why have a law that doesn't…

    • 916 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    At the age of 18 you are legally considered an adult in the U.S. It entitles you to what you would think to be the freedoms of a responsible adult. You can vote, get married, join the army and fight for our country, and even sign contracts. But somehow you’re not considered mature enough to have a sip of alcohol? This law should be considered discrimination against young adults in the 18-20 age range. What many people don’t know, is the real reason why we have the world’s highest drinking age. In 1984 congress threatened to reduce highway funding for all states who did not raise their minimun purchase age and public possession of alcohol laws. Of course all U.S. states complied with this act, nationally raising the legal age. They say it’s…

    • 635 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Alcohol in the hands of an irresponsible under aged person, can be deadly. Furthermore, for anyone to consider lowering the legal drinking age from 21, to 18, in my opinion is simply ludicrous. John Bowersox reports, “Since Colonial times, drinking alcohol has been part of American culture and its use by young people has been accepted by many as part of growing up. In fact, during the late 1960s and early 1970s, many States lowered the legal drinking age from 21 to 18. Following this change, the number of alcohol-related traffic fatalities among young people increased. In response to these acute consequences, beginning in the early 1980s individual States increased the drinking age to 21. In 1984, Congress passed legislation that would…

    • 927 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    There is a study that shows there are fewer road accidents due to alcohol in countries where the minimum age for alcohol consumption is 18 years. Despite the fact that in 1984 the United States defined the minimum legal drinking age at 21 years old, its rate of traffic accidents decreased less than that of European countries during the 1980s.…

    • 316 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays