Consequences of underage drinking fact sheet

Talking points on Youth, Alcohol, Harm
from the NAS study by
CSPI
AMA press release on the NAS report

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Report on under age drinking
 

 

 

 

 


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 NATIONAL ACADEMIES REPORT TO CONGRESS RELEASED-
Brief Overview of Findings:
Read the E-Book version online at NAS here
The National Academies’ Institute of Medicine (IOM) and National Research Council released a much-anticipated Report to Congress entitled “Reducing Underage Drinking: A Collective Responsibility,” on September 9. The committee that prepared the report was charged with reviewing existing programs and approaches and developing a strategy to reduce underage drinking. As the title suggests, emphasis was placed on adopting an inclusive strategy to address this issue, one that invites everyone to take responsibility for combating the problem. The committee based its considerations on the societal context in which underage drinking occurs.

This included five elements—that alcohol is:
  • Easy for youth to get
  • Obtained from adults in commercial and social outlets
  • Advertised in venues that reach youth
  • Prominent in entertainment media
  • Cheaper than it was 30-40 years ago (when adjustments are made for inflation)

    The committee also found that the average age of drinking is decreasing. Understanding that underage drinking has become a normative behavior in our society, the committee developed the following strategy to address the problem. The report purposely does not rank the components, believing that a multifaceted approach with reinforcing elements is essential to successful implementation.

    The components include:

  • Adult-Oriented Media Campaign—The goal of this effort is to raise adult awareness and recognition of individual and collective responsibility of adults. The committee stressed the need to develop and test messages for effectiveness prior to implementation.
     
  • National Partnership—The need for all stakeholders to work together was emphasized. The committee suggested that public and private partners, including the alcohol industry, establish and fund an independent nonprofit foundation with the sole mission of preventing and reducing underage drinking. Emphasis was placed on funding only science-based programs with proven efficacy.
     
  • Advertising Restraint—The committee identified the need for the alcohol industry to strengthen its current voluntary advertising codes, refrain from marketing practices that have substantial appeal to youth, and be more careful to place ads to reduce youthful exposure. Even though the committee stated that without direct evidence for a causal link between advertising and alcohol consumption, self-regulation is appropriate, it also stated that Congress should appropriate necessary funding for the U.S Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) to monitor underage exposure to alcohol advertising on a continuing basis and to report periodically to Congress and the public.
     
  • Entertainment Responsibility—The committee recommended that the entertainment industries use rating systems and marketing codes to reduce the likelihood that underage audiences will be exposed to movies, recordings, or television programs with unsuitable alcohol content. The committee recommended that DHHS periodically review programs, etc., that are likely to be viewed by youth and report these findings to Congress and the public.
     
  • Compliance with Access Limits—Recommendations were made for the State and Federal level including strengthening compliance check programs from retail outlets, regulation of Internet sales and home delivery, enforcement to deter adults from purchasing alcohol for minors, and keg registration.

    In addition, States were encouraged to enforce zero tolerance laws, enact and enforce graduated driver licensing laws, implement sobriety checkpoints, strengthen efforts to prevent and detect use of fake IDs, and establish administrative procedures and noncriminal penalties. Recommendations for local enforcement were also included.
     
    • Youth-Oriented Interventions—This is an area where the need for research and evaluation was highlighted, both to inform a youth-focused media campaign and to evaluate intervention programs. College-based interventions were specifically recommended for evaluation.
    • Community Interventions—The committee recognized the value of community interventions tailored to the needs of the community. It was emphasized that only evidence-based interventions should be funded.
    • Government Assistance and Coordination—it was recommended that a Federal interagency coordinating committee on prevention of underage drinking be established, chaired by the Secretary of DHHS.
    • Alcohol Excise Taxes—This was by far the most controversial proposal in the report. The committee was resolute that increasing the price of alcohol is known to be effective in reducing underage consumption. It was beyond the scope of the committee to recommend specifics, but the committee did state that alcohol should at least be indexed to the consumer price index.
    • Research and Evaluation—The committee emphasized the need for ongoing research and evaluation to inform all aspects of the plan and to reach all segments of the population

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