Why is there a legal drinking age?

In short, we ended up with a national minimum age of 21 because of the National Minimum Drinking Age Act of 1984. This law basically told states that they had to enact a minimum drinking age of 21 or lose up to 10 percent of their federal highway funding.

Why should the legal age for drinking be 21?

Teens get drunk twice as fast as adults,9 but have more trouble knowing when to stop. Teens naturally overdo it and binge more often than adults. Enforcing the legal drinking age of 21 reduces traffic crashes,4-6 protects young people’s maturing brains,12,14 and keeps young people safer overall.

Why is the drinking age 19?

In 1971, Ontario lowered its legal drinking age to 18 from 21; but since 1979, the province has settled on 19 as the province’s legal drinking age. The reason for the turnaround? It occurred in part because when the age was lowered to 18, there were too many complaints of high schoolers getting drunk.

Why is the drinking age 21 and not 25?

Pros of Raising the Drinking Age to 25 Much research has shown the damaging effects of alcohol on brain development in teens and young adults. Young adult and teen drinking can interfere with brain development, causing long-term consequences like: Damage to the hippocampus resulting in issues with memory and learning.

Why is the drinking age in Australia 18?

In the first half of the 20th century, the drinking age in Australia depended upon local jurisdiction and ranged from 18 to 21. However, during the Vietnam War, the age was reduced to 18 on the grounds that a person who could be conscripted to fight and die for their country should also have the right to drink alcohol.

Why the drinking age should be lowered to 18 essay?

The drinking age should be lowered to 18 because you can vote at eighteen, buy tobacco, it’ll reduce the thrill of breaking the law, evidence supports that early introduction of drinking is the safest way to reduce juvenile alcohol abuse, and college people that are not 21 drink also.

Why the drinking age should be 19?

Why We Should Lower the Drinking Age to 19. Age 21 minimum drinking laws are counter-productive. There is much evidence that reducing the drinking age to 19 would reduce the abuse of alcohol among young people. The U.S. has the strictest youth drinking laws in western civilization.

Can soldiers smoke at 18?

You must be 21 years of age or older to purchase tobacco or tobacco related products (i.e. cigarette papers, tobacco paraphernalia, instruments designed for the smoking or ingestion of tobacco products) in the State of California. The exception is for active duty military personnel who are 18 years of age or older.

Why is the minimum legal drinking age 21 in America?

A Minimum Legal Drinking Age (MLDA) of 21 saves lives and protects health. Minimum Legal Drinking Age (MLDA) laws specify the legal age when an individual can purchase alcoholic beverages. The MLDA in the United States is 21 years.

What was the legal drinking age in the 1970s?

After Prohibition, nearly all states adopted a minimum legal drinking age (MLDA) of 21. Between 1970 and 1975, however, 29 states lowered the MLDA to 18, 19, or 20, largely in response to the change in the voting age.

Does raising the drinking age reduce drinking and driving?

A review by the U.S. General Accounting Office, conducted in 1988, found that raising the drinking age reduced youth drinking, youth driving after drinking, and alcohol-related traffic accidents among youth.

Does the age of minimum legal drinking age (MLDA) matter?

Drinking among people aged 21 to 25 also declined significantly when states adopted the age 21 MLDA, from 70\% in 1985 to 56\% in 1991. 7 There is also evidence that the age 21 MLDA protects drinkers from alcohol and other drug dependence, adverse birth outcomes, and suicide and homicide. 4