Courtney Crotts

English 112 - Issue Report

November 4, 2019

The Evaluation of The Minimum Legal Drinking Age

There are many different aspects to take into consideration when discussing the

minimum legal drinking age. Many citizens believe it should be lowered to eighteen, while

other believe it should remain twenty-one. It is a legal issue that has been debated on for many

years and will probably continue to be a topic of question for many years to come. However,

the consequences of lowering the MLDA outweigh the benefits in the end.

This is proved in the article “The Minimum Legal Drinking Age and Public Health”.

Carpenter and Dobkin states:

Alcohol consumption by young adults results in numerous harms including deaths,

injuries, commission of crime, criminal victimization, risky sexual behavior, and reduced

workforce productivity. (Carpenter and Dobkin)

The minimum legal drinking age has not been set outside of the eighteen to twenty-one age

range since the 1930’s (Carpenter and Dobkin). There has always been a general agreed upon

range that was deemed appropriate. In the 1970s, 39 states lowered their minimum legal

drinking age to ages ranging from eighteen to twenty. These drinking age reductions were

followed by increases in motor vehicle fatalities, which were documented by numerous

researchers at the time (Carpenter and Dobkin). This increase in traffic incidents and fatalities
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shows the dangers of lowering the minimum legal drinking age and how serious the outcomes

of lowering it could be.

About 40 percent of college students report binge drinking (Degutis). The article

"Choose Accountability: Keep the Legal U.S. Drinking Age at 21." states:

Raising the minimum legal drinking age has had an impact on lives beyond college

campuses: Laws making it illegal for someone under age 21 to purchase or possess

alcohol have led to an 11 percent drop in alcohol-related traffic deaths among youth.

From 1988 to 1995, alcohol- related traffic fatalities for youth ages 15 to 20 fell by 47

percent, another recent study noted. (Degutis)

This article also provides compelling evidence showing alcohol related damage to the

developing brain. This shows how damaging alcohol can be for a young adult to consume.

Alcohol especially effects the part of the brain that controls memory and learning (Degutis). The

mind is always expanding and growing. Alcohol can have negative effects on the brain and

cause a disruption in the developing mind. It impairs memory and can have long-term effects

and damage with long-term alcohol usage.

Some say that the current minimum drinking age is the cause of binge drinking on

college campuses (Kapsidelis). In the article "Changing the Drinking Age? : Some People Say

Lowering the Legal Drinking Age would Reduce Binge Drinking. Others Say that Idea is

Ludicrous.", it is stated that the precursor to binge drinking is underage drinking. Binge drinking

occurs on many university campuses across the U.S. There are also many people challenging

this law because the “adult” side of it. Citizens argue that at the age of eighteen "You can fight
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in the war, but you can't drink," and "You can serve on a jury at age 18. . . . You can make life-

and-death decisions. . . . but you can't buy a beer." (Kapsidelis). People argue that if you are

considered an adult at eighteen, you should be allowed to drink alcohol and make that decision

to be responsible like an adult. However, with age comes a certain level of maturity and you

have to be able to make responsible decisions following the consumption of alcohol.

Lowering the MLDA has caused an increase in traffic accidents. The article "The Age-21

Minimum Legal Drinking Age: A Case Study Linking Past and Current Debates: (Alcoholism and

Drug Addiction)." by Toomey, Traci L., Toben F. Nelson, and Kathleen M. Lenk discusses the

history of the minimum legal drinking age. It shows the different laws that have been

implemented throughout the years and the effects and consequences that came from it. The

article states, “However, as a result of studies showing that these lower MLDAs were associated

with increases in traffic crashes, state-level movements began in the later 1970s to return

MLDAs to age 21.” (Toomey, Nelson, and Lenk). This not only makes the roads unsafe for

those driving, but anyone near the roads at the time., such as people walking, riding bicycles,

etc.

Studies have shown a vast variety of consequences related to drinking. In the article,

“Will Increasing Alcohol Availability by Lowering the Minimum Legal Drinking Age Decrease

Drinking and Related Consequences among Youths?" By Wechsler, Henry, PhD., and Toben F.

Nelson ScD, The article compares the benefits and consequences of the minimum legal drinking

age being 18 or 21. It provides evidence to support their argument and delves into the facts

surrounding the controversy. It also goes on to inform us of different prevention methods for
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underage drinking and the importance of such prevention. It also connects the use of alcohol

with the related health consequences. The article states:

Alcohol use is associated with a wide range of adverse health and social consequences,

including physical and sexual assault, unintended pregnancy, sexually transmitted

infection, violence, vandalism, crime, overdose, other substance use, and high-risk

behavior, resulting in a heavy burden of social and health costs (Wechsler and Nelson).

The article goes on to talk about when the minimum legal drinking age was lowered in the past

and the consequences that came along with it. “The lower minimum legal drinking age was

followed by increases in the sale and consumption of alcohol and in alcohol-involved traffic

fatalities, particularly among young adults aged 18–20 years” (Wechsler and Nelson). The

article keeps a neutral tone throughout the entire discussion and gives the reader the facts to

decide how they feel on their own. “Of the 79 quality studies that examined the relationship

between the minimum legal drinking age and traffic crashes, 58% found fewer crashes

associated with a higher minimum legal drinking age, whereas no study found fewer crashes

associated with a lower minimum legal drinking age.” (Wechsler and Nelson). This shows no

correlation between the MLDA and related traffic accidents.

Overall, there were many different experiments and studies conducted to see whether

the minimum legal drinking age is better off as eighteen or twenty-one. In the end, there was

an abundance of evidence supporting both sides of the argument. There are going to be pros

and cons no matter which age is the minimum legal drinking age, however the benefits

outweigh the consequences of it being 21 rather than 18.

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Works Cited

Carpenter, Christopher, and Carlos Dobkin. "The Minimum Legal Drinking Age and Public

Health." The Journal of Economic Perspectives, vol. 25, no. 2, 2011, pp. 133-156.

ProQuest,

https://login.proxy039.nclive.org/login?url=https://search.proquest.com/docview/8699

08766?accountid=10163, doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1257/jep.25.2.133

Degutis, Linda, DrPH. "Choose Accountability: Keep the Legal U.S. Drinking Age at 21." The

Nation's Health, vol. 38, no. 8, 2008, pp. 3. ProQuest,

https://login.proxy039.nclive.org/login?url=https://search.proquest.com/docview/1984

55640?accountid=10163.

Kapsidelis, Karin. "Changing the Drinking Age?: Some People Say Lowering the Legal Drinking

Age would Reduce Binge Drinking. Others Say that Idea is Ludicrous." McClatchy -

Tribune Business News, Nov 26, 2007. ProQuest,

https://login.proxy039.nclive.org/login?url=https://search.proquest.com/docview/4635

35912?accountid=10163.

Rasul, Jawaid W., et al. "Heavy Episodic Drinking on College Campuses: Does Changing the Legal

Drinking Age make a Difference?" Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, vol. 72, no. 1,

2011, pp. 15-23. ProQuest,

https://login.proxy039.nclive.org/login?url=https://search.proquest.com/docview/8530

57526?accountid=10163, doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.15288/jsad.2011.72.15.
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Toomey, Traci L., Toben F. Nelson, and Kathleen M. Lenk. "The Age-21 Minimum Legal Drinking

Age: A Case Study Linking Past and Current Debates: (Alcoholism and Drug Addiction)."

Addiction, vol. 104, no. 12, 2009, pp. 1958-1965. ProQuest,

https://login.proxy039.nclive.org/login?url=https://search.proquest.com/docview/1995

78923?accountid=10163, doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1360-0443.2009.02742.x.

Wechsler, Henry, PhD., and Toben F. Nelson ScD. "Will Increasing Alcohol Availability by

Lowering the Minimum Legal Drinking Age Decrease Drinking and Related

Consequences among Youths?" American Journal of Public Health, vol. 100, no. 6, 2010,

pp. 986-92. ProQuest,

https://login.proxy039.nclive.org/login?url=https://search.proquest.com/docview/3475

33689?accountid=10163.