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Alcohol

Alcohol, its something most American teenagers drink during their high school and collage years, mainly because of social pressures. Most of the teenagers think there is no harm in drinking at parties, or with a group of friends. But today, alcoholism and alcohol abuse are growing problems in society. Alcohol is a drug, and like almost all drugs it has an effect on a person's body, mind and actions. It may seem as a stimulant, because it makes people seem more outgoing, but it's a depressant, because it slows down the central nervous system. Some people have a biological tendency toward alcohol. It's been said that if a child had a family member that is an alcoholic, the risk is four times greater that they might become an alcoholic. People might also turn to alcohol if they're depressed, bored or hang out with people who do drugs. Stress might also lead to addiction of alcohol.

Most experimentation of alcohol begins at an early age. The legal age for drinking may be 21, but children start drinking as early as age 9, typically in the form of a glass of wine shared with their parents, or maybe the influence of an older brother or sister. The causes of alcoholism can lead to nothing but negative influences.

Alcohol can cause a lot of effects, and they're all negative. There isn't one positive that it can do. There are a lot of long-term effects, but the most serious one is fatal alcohol syndrome, which is a disease caused when drinking during pregnancy. Children born with this disease can have physical abnormalities, mental impairment, and behavioral problems. Also, Alcohol related birth defects could have lifelong learning and behavioral problems. It isn't known how much alcohol it takes to cause birth defects, so it's better not to have any at all. Other long-term effects include liver disease, heart disease, and certain cancers that effect the pancreas. Heavy drinking increases chances of high blood pressure, heart disease, strokes, and certain kind of cancers.

Alcohol has a major effect on driving. Driving skills such as steering the car, or responding to changes in traffic, may be impaired with blood alcohol levels as low as .02 percent. The more alcohol a person drinks, the more reckless their driving will be. In many states, the legal limit is .08 or 0.1, even though a lot lower levels can impair your driving skills.

Many people learn to control alcohol intake, while others abuse alcohol to the point of alcoholism. Once a person drinks alcohol, they might have a hard time staying away from it, because they say "it gives me a good feeling." But no matter how much someone may like it, it can kill them both mentally and physically.

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