About Underage Drinking

Key points

• Alcohol is the most common drug used by people younger than 21 in the United States.
• Young people who drink alcohol are more likely to develop certain physical and mental health conditions.

Facts

• About 4,000 young people (under 21) die from excessive alcohol use each year.A1
  • These deaths, which could have been prevented, take the lives of young people too soon.
• Underage drinking cost the United States $24 billion in 2010 (the most recent year of data available).B2

Effects of underage drinking

Alcohol is the most common drug that young people use in the United States.3

Young people who drink alcohol are more likely to engage in risky behaviors that can lead to injuries and other health conditions. They're also more likely to experience social, academic, and legal issues.

Social, academic, and legal issues:

• More school absences.
• Lower grades.
• Drinking and driving, which puts the safety of those who drink—as well as those around them—at risk.
• Misusing prescription drugs or using illicit drugs—there can be serious health effects when using these drugs with alcohol.

Physical and mental conditions:

• Violence, including homicide, suicide, and sexual violence.
• Injuries including alcohol-related motor vehicle crashes, burns, falls, or drowning.
• Not growing as expected.
• Slower brain development—which may cause problems with memory.
• Sexually transmitted infections (STIs), HIV, and unplanned pregnancy—which can result from sex without protection.
  • Protection includes using condoms or taking medicine to prevent STIs, HIV, or pregnancy.

Lastly, people who start drinking earlier in life have a higher risk of using alcohol excessively or developing alcohol use disorder later in life.

What the data show

Adult alcohol use can increase underage drinking

Adolescents tend to drink if the adults around them drink or binge drink alcohol.

For example, a study showed that adolescents whose parents drank 5 or more days in a month were significantly more likely to drink alcohol than adolescents whose parents didn't drink.4

Alcohol is the most common drug young people use

Drug use among high school students during the past 30 days

Also, 9% of high school students reported binge drinking during the past month.3

In recent years:

• Alcohol use and binge drinking among high school students have generally decreased in recent decades.5
• More high school girls drink alcohol and binge drink, compared to high school boys.5
  • This is a shift from previous years when boys drank more than girls.5

Some young people also report drinking and driving

• About 16% of high school students reported riding in the past month with a driver who had been drinking alcohol.3
• About 5% of high school students who had driven in the past month said they drove after drinking alcohol.3

Resources

Learn more about:

• How proven alcohol policies can prevent alcohol-related harms.
• Ways to prevent excessive alcohol use by creating supportive environments that make drinking less an easier choice.
  • This includes strategies that can support young people's development by reducing underage drinking.