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Who and Why is at Risk for Alcoholism?
Drunk driving might get all the attention, but when it comes to teens and drinking, this
problem is just as life-threatening. It was the end of the summer 2015, when my friend seventeen
year old Danijel Tulimirovic, and his friends decided to go to a party in town. The friend’s
parents were out of town. Danijel and his friends were drinking and playing games at the house
before the party. Later, they went on a huge party at the Club X and continued drinking, and
around 2 am, when party was over Danijel and his three friends decided to drive around the
town. The guy who was driving was twenty-one years old, but he did not have driving license.
He lost control and they crashed. Danijel’s friend Marko had concussion, the guy who was
driving he broke his arm and Danijel died right away. This is just one example of serious
problem facing teenagers in Serbia, caused by undeveloped brains, easy access to alcohol, and
unenforced drinking laws: the effects are physical, psychological and mental health, high dropout
rates.
One of the causes is undeveloped brains. Drinking before twenty-five is dangerous,
because alcohol affects every organ in your body, including our brain. It can hurt our success in
the classroom and on the sports field and cause problems with our friends and family. Teenagers
do not need alcohol to fit in, deal with stress, or have fun. The fact that their brains are not
developed until the middle of twenties means that we are legal adults, who are allowed to make
adult decisions, without fully mature brains. Someone who is eighteen may make riskier
decisions than someone in their middle twenties in part due to lack of experience, but primarily
due to an underdeveloped brain. All behaviors and experiences one endures until the age of
twenty-five have potential to impact our developing brain. “New brain imaging technologies of
the past fifteen years, or so, now allow scientists to study the live, human brain, and with that,
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they now understand that alcoholism is a disease of addiction and that alcohol affects the teen
brain differently because of the critical brain development occurring from ages twelve through
twenty, often until age twenty-five” (Fredericksen).
Another cause is easy access to alcohol. “One way to prevent teens from drinking is to
cut off easy access to alcohol. Unfortunately, right now most teens report that it is easy to get
alcohol. Almost 72% of teens who drink get alcohol without having to pay for it. They get it
from friends or family members, at parties, or by taking it without permission. Underage drinkers
who pay for alcohol usually give money to someone else to buy it” (“Stopping”). Teens have
easy access to alcohol at parties and can get it from older friends or from their parents’ liquor
cabinets. Unlike drug use, moderate alcohol use is considered acceptable in most adult social
circles. Teens see parents enjoying a martini or a glass of wine after work to relax or during
dinner, so they think drinking makes them more grown up. Also, parents’ approval of underage
drinking sends the wrong message to teens: that alcohol use is okay, but it is not okay. Any use
of alcohol by teens is dangerous. People who start drinking as teenagers are more likely to
become alcoholics. They may have problems later because alcohol affects how the brain and
body grow. Also, drinking put teens in harm’s way when they are out having fun, especially
while driving.
The last cause is unenforced drinking laws. The legal minimum drinking age in Serbia is
eighteen years old to buy or consume alcohol. It appears to be hard to enforce this as many
young teens are drinking on a regular basis. Law enforcement says it is the duty of the
shopkeepers not to sell alcohol to anyone under eighteen, yet it is left up to the sellers to
determine who is old enough to buy it and who is not, but the problem is the most of the shops
sellers do not check buyer’s IDs. There are no punishments for the sellers, but the buyer could be
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fined. Serbians use everything as a reason to drink. It is done with meals, for parties, for
festivals, for special occasions and just because there is nothing else to do. Alcoholic beverages
are easily bought in Serbia: stores and shops, supermarkets, restaurants and drinking
establishments offer beers, wines and liquors for your consumption. “Among those countries that
set a legal age, eighteen is the most common, although in many cases the legal drinking age is
ignored or unenforced” (“What”).
One of the effects is possible physical injury or death. Teenagers who are drinking too
much on a single occasion or over time can take a serious toll on their health. Alcohol can affect
their body’s brain, heart, pancreas, and immune system. Alcohol interferes with the brain’s
communication pathways, and can affect the way the brain looks and works. These disruptions
can change mood and behavior, and make it harder to think clearly and move with
