National Report: Increase Alcohol Excise Tax
A National Call to Action Reduce Underage Illegal Drinking -
Last year the NAS report outlined actions to reduce alcohol consumption
by those under the legal drinking age (21).
Underage Drinking (CASA)
Underage drinkers are a critical segment of the alcohol beverage market.
Since most heavy and problem drinkers begin drinking before they reach
age 21, underage drinking is key to the profitability of the alcohol
industry.
- 87 percent of adults who
drink had their first drink of alcohol before age 21.
- Individuals who begin
drinking before the age of 15 are four times more likely to become
alcohol dependent than those who begin drinking at age 21.
- The prevalence of
lifetime alcohol abuse is greatest for those who begin drinking at age
14.
- Underage drinkers and
adult heavy drinkers combined consume 61 percent of the alcohol sold
in the U.S.
more on this
report
Underage drinking is
widespread in the United States.
Approximately 13,212,000
underage youth in The United States drink each year. In 2001, according
to self-reports by United States students in grades 9-121:
- 78% had at least one
drink of alcohol on one or more days during their life.
- 29% had their first
drink of alcohol, other than a few sips, before age 13.
- 47% had at least one
drink of alcohol on one or more occasion in the past 30 days.
- 30% had five or more
drinks of alcohol in a row (i.e. binge drinking) in the past 30 days.
- 5% had at least one
drink of alcohol on school property on one or more of the past 30
days.
In 2001, underage
drinkers consumed 16.2% of all alcohol sold in the United States.2
1Center
for Disease Control (CDC). (2001). Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance
System (YRBSS). Available [On-line]:
http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dash/yrbs/2001/youth01online/htm.
State Estimates of Substance Use From the 2002–2003 NSDUH,
SAMHSA
