Should the Drinking Age be Lowered in the United States

Should the United States follow other countries in their quest to end the debate on the drinking age? The United States can take a look at other States such as: Germany, the Netherlands and France, and see how successful they are. Many teenagers would jump on the bandwagon of lowering the drinking age just because they want to have the ability to drink, the argument of being able to die for the United States but can’t drink and it would take away the â€Å"Forbidden Fruit† of drinking. Much of the older generations would jump on the bandwagon of keeping the drinking age the same because they had to wait to drink, because drinking has adverse effects on the brain and drinking could lead to binge drinking. The United States define an adult as†¦show more content†¦Statistically speaking, there are 195 sovereign countries in the world and only 15 have drinking ages higher than the age of 18, that is only 7.8% of the world. There must be a good explanation for this phenomenon. Some of the most notable countries that have a lower drinking age than 21 are: Germany, France and Canada. There are a few countries that even allow you to buy alcohol at any age, such as: Bangladesh, Cambodia, Comoros and Guinea-Bissau. WHO has reported that Germany’s life expectancy for males is around 76 years old; the life expectancy of Germany seems especially high considering they can drink at a young age, which almost contradicts the American mindset on drinking. Many arguments against lowering the drinking age are legitimate arguments. Science has proven that alcohol can have adverse effects on the frontal lobe of the brain, which is the part of the brain that makes decisions. The frontal lobe is not fully developed until a person’s mid-20’s. â€Å"The potential for chronic problems such as greater vulnerability to addiction, dangerous risk-taking behavior, reduced decision-making ability, memory loss, depression, violence, and suicide is gr eater.† (Drinking Age ProCon.org). Statistics have proven that the younger you are, the more likely you are to binge drink. In the UnitedShow MoreRelatedThe Drinking Age Of The United States Should Be Lowered929 Words   |  4 Pagestend to dispute today, whether the drinking age of the United States should be lowered from 21 to 18. The drinking age for people to drink alcoholic beverages was made into law by the National Minimum Drinking Age Act. This ant enforced all states to raise their legal drinking age to 21. To get this law pass, the congress tried to strongarm the states, if the states did not comply, the government would take away their highway funds. Both arguments for it to be lowered and to keep it the same are beneficialRead MoreThe Minimum Drinking Age Act1700 Words   |  7 PagesNational Minimum Drinking Age Act made all 50 states raise the legal drinking age to 21(Dejong). The debate is on whether the age should be lowered or not. Statistically, having the age at 21 has been very helpful in keeping the nation safe. If there is not an issue with age now, would it make sense to lower the age and create unnecessary problems? In this case, the negative effects outweigh the positive. Simply because there is no good in lowering the age. The legal drinking age has been set atRead MoreFor Years, The Debate About Deciding A Minimum Legal Drinking1638 Words   |  7 Pagesyears, the debate about deciding a minimum legal drinking age (MLDA) has plagued the United States. The arguments can include that intoxicated driving accidents will increase if the MLDA was lowered or that the current MLDA is not decreasing drinking among young adults at all. The torn arguments between ages eighteen and twenty-one have not proven one age to be the right answer to the problem of deciding a drinking age, but if the MLDA was lowered to age eighteen, it would be the most beneficial choiceRead MoreDrinking Age Drinking847 Words   |  4 Pages There has been a n ongoing discussion in the United States on whether the drinking age should be lowered to eighteen like most of the world or if it should stay at twenty-one. Underage drinking has been a major questionable issue for years, yet why is it not under control? Teenagers are continuing to buy alcohol with fake identification cards, getting into bars and drinking illegally. As a recent teen, I have proof that these things are going on not only in college but in high school as well. ThereRead MoreShould The Minimum Drinking Age Be Lowered?1138 Words   |  5 Pagesquestion whether drinking should be lowered to eighteen or not? Citizens have gave details regarding the affirmative and negative views of the minimum drinking age be lowered to eighteen. Do you think that it is wise to lower the minimum age? Would you look at the negative and positive impacts? Is it more important to give our citizens these full rights? Currently, in the United States the legal drinking age is twenty-one. But a s we all know many teenages are involved in underage drinking. But the mainRead MoreControversial Analysis: Drinking Age1278 Words   |  6 PagesCarolina Quiroga April 02, 2012 Leslie Jones English 102 The Drinking Age and Young Adults. Because underage drinking is a major problem for young adults, the drinking age has become a very controversial issue. In the 1990s, the drinking age was 18, but it was changed to 21 in 1984. The Federal Government informed states to choose between raising the drinking age to 21 or foregoing highway funding. This decision obviously affected 18 to 20 year olds who could no longer buy alcoholic beveragesRead MoreLowering The Legal Drinking Age857 Words   |  4 PagesAs we know, the United States has the highest drinking age in the world. By 1988 the entire U.S had adopted the Federal Uniform Drinking Age Act, which set the drinking age to twenty-one. However, in 1920 the United States banned the sale, production, importation, and transportation of alcohol. This era known as the Prohibition sparked the popularity of hidden underground bars and events. The Prohibition Era is a prime example of how people did anything to intake alcohol and eventually this ledRead MoreMinimum Legal Drinking Age Should Be Lowered1253 Words   |  6 Pages Minimum Legal Drinking Age Should the drinking age be lowered from 21 to a younger age? Ever since the end of prohibition in 1933 the United States government has placed the issue of minimum legal drinking age sensitively in the hands of the states, letting each decide for itself what the minimum age should be. At that time all agreed that the minimum legal drinking age should be 21, where it remained for all states until 1970.Between 1970Read MoreProhibition Of The National Minimum Drinking Age Act1376 Words   |  6 Pagesregulations instituted by the government were suggestions. After the Prohibition laws were lifted in 1993, the drinking age was set at twenty one but was later lowered to eighteen because of the passage of the 26th amendment which lowered the voting age to eighteen. In order to combat drunk driving, The National Minimum Drinking Age Act was passed and stated that states must raise their drinking age to twenty one or lose 10% of their funds to pay for their highways. The organization MADD (Mother’s AgainstRead More The Problems of Underage Drinking Essay526 Words   |  3 Pagescontroversy of underage drinking has been a serious and difficult issue for many colleges, communities, and parents over the past several years. Fifty states in the U.S have already set their minimum alcohol drinking and purchasing age to twenty one. Yet many people, especially teenagers, oppose this legal drinking age and want it to be lowered. Nevertheless, the legal drinking age should not be lowered from twenty one to eighteen because of three main reasons. The higher minimum drinking age can help reduce