Teenage drinking..how bad is it for you?

Question

I am 15 and obviously I know alcohol is never the best (nor legal) thing for young people to be drinking however I am just curious as to how damaging the very occasion night of consuming alcohol is - ie a few nights (special occasions) a year where you drink a fair bit - not enough to be drunk or hungover but enough so that one would be a little tispy is? Also is a hangover a sign that you damaged your body (not explained very clearly) I mean for instance if you have no hangover does it mean that your body has suffered no ill effects? Thanks!

For me tispy isn't quite the same as drunk, in my view and in the context used above it is more so referring to not quite drunk but having had alcohol and perhaps feeling the effects very slightly

Just a few nights a year is what I mean by "occasional" And in a controlled environment.

Answer 1

i'm 16, an AP student, respectable test scores, good friends, i do well in school, and i do in fact drink occasionally.

usually it isnt the 'crack open a can of beer everyday' type thing, but more of a special occasion celebration, i.e. new years or weddings.

i also make it a policy to never drink unless there is an adult around, which most of the time is my parents. and yes, they let me drink, but in moderate amounts. their reasoning: its better to have me do it in front of them than behind their backs.

i also NEVER drink when i go out with friends, because i know that my self control wavers when im around them.

also, i never drink to the point of getting drunk, tipsy, or to the point where i have a hangover the next morning. usually, for me, its about two glasses of wine/champagne.

i'm also not a fan of drinking games at all. that type of drinking is the kind usually glorified on myspace pictures and attacked by media news networks.

my point? drinking can be fun from time to time, but if you do it too often or drink too much, it can ruin your life. if you plan on drinking, please exercise extreme self control, know your limits, and do NOT give in to peer pressure.

Answer 2

I used to drink and get drunk before the age of 21. I'm 21 now and can say that I have actually consumed more alcohol in my teen years than I have now that I'm at a legal age to purchase and drink alcohol.

I made a lot of mistakes when I was younger. Like drinking and driving. Luckily I never got in a wreck and hurt myself or someone else. But I would say as long as you're in a house or somewhere where danger isn't too close, and that everyone who does have a license & car, their keys are restricted until the next day or so, that would be the safest way to drink.

I've drank a lot, like I said, and have been hungover maybe twice through it all. I think it's just how your body takes the alcohol and how it reacts to it. There's a difference between being hungover and having alcohol poisoning. Hungover doesn't necessarily mean that you hurt your body, it's just recooperating from the wild night before.

I'm not for underage drinking, nor do I promote it in anyway, but at whatever age, if you're going to drink, drink responsibly.

Answer 3

Hello,
When one is drunk, or "tipsy" it is a cause of poisoning yourself.
Alcohol is a drug, a widely used and a killer drug. It is one of the top most dangerous drugs, marijuana did not even make the top ten.
Women are more likely to be poisoned faster then men for we are smaller in stature then men. Some people when they poison themselves get red blotches all over there body (hives) and destroy there kidneys and other vital organs. Some people do not have to drink much for the internal organs to get damaged or shut down all together.
To take away a drug that is so widely used in our society has proven to be hard to do as the Prohibition days of time gone by.
People need there drugs and look around. Next time you go into a store look where the alcohol is and look where the milk is. Usually the alcohol is set in a spot up front while the milk is in the back, shameful!
Take the drug if you choose but be aware of side effects.

Read the link below, it is a good read.

Another form of alcohol, ethanol is now being used to run hybred cars.

Answer 4

The human brain is still developing until between 19 and 22. Drinking alcohol, even small amounts can affect neurological development. Different people get drunk and hung over with different amounts of alcohol. Your body also gets used to drinking and it will take more for your body to become drunk. This does not mean that alcohol does not affect you if you're not drunk. Alcoholics have very high levels before they are left with a hungover.

Also, the younger people start drinking the more of a chance that people will become alcoholics.

I would say a glass of wine at Christmas dinner isn't going to kill you. But much more than that isn't good.

Answer 5

Well, I can understand why schools would be pushing abstinence, and it's not because of religion, it really is the only 100% effective way to not get pregnant. But on the other hand, it's pretty much impossible to stay abstinent as a teenager. I agree that schools (public AND private) should be teaching teens safe sex methods, such as birth control, and the use of condoms, etc. It is just so easy to get these items, that there should be no excuse for a smart person to get pregnant by accident. Birth control is FREE if you go to a planned parenthood type place, and so are condoms. Even if you feel awkward buying them, why risk getting pregnant for a few seconds of embarrassment? There is no reason, even "in the heat of the moment" to not use birth control or condoms. You will regret it in the long run, for sure. Why do I know all of these things? Because I am 19 years old and four months pregnant. I didn't use protection, but the guy I got pregnant from was my fiance of four years, which isn't bad at all Sure we didn't plan it, but at least I am in college and have graduated high school. We have a great family support system and everything is working out for the better. But my situation is unique, most people my age that get pregnant do not stay with the person that got them pregnant and have a very hard time making ends meet. I have learned greatly from my experience and want my story to inspire people to practice safe sex. Please, if you want to have sex, use effective contraception. :) >>>AND I don't understand why someone gave me a thumbs down?? Nothing I wrote was offensive, so obviously whoever did does not like the idea of safe sex?? WOW. douche.

Answer 6

Every time you get drunk, you kill about 30,000 brain cells. Of course, if you don't drink, about 30,000 brain cells die anyway. If you drink or don't, 30,000 new ones are born next day. I stayed drunk from the age of 18 to 42, at which time I had too many things wrong with me to count. The only thing that saved me was AA and the fact that Drs seldom treat drunks, except rich ones. Imagine being drunk and getting the side effects of all that crap they peddle? Talk about the horrors. I don't know which is worse, booze or the chemistry they give healthy people. Ever see a truly obese house wife too fat to turn her head, flying down the road with eyes like soccor balls from the pills, a big gulp in one hand, a cell fone in the other, petting her dog with the other, tinted to black windows, and designer shades over her pinned eyes, 'cause her eyes are just a tad sensitive, you understand. But it's cool, she's insured.

Answer 7

dark_princess341,
drinking is not good for you in a variety of ways:
1.) It can kill you because when you get drunk you're bound to do something you'll regret for the rest of your life
2.) you get yourself sick
3.) drinking also messes with your mind, especially at a young age when your brain is still developing, drinking will also have you become addicted to it and it can be hard to stop

a hangover is a sign that you've had too many drink or alcohol consumed, your body is just coping with that and has to send the alcoholic fluids somewhere all over in your bodystream but no permanent body damage..just sickness

Answer 8

I start drinking at the age of 14 before that I was a straight A-B student, I played piano, and I was on the basket ball team, I will tell you it's nothing but a quick road to destruction, within 3 years I dropped out of school lost all or most of my Friends ( well at least the real ones and had a major bout with depression) you are to young to need alcohol to make life fun, you have you're whole life in front of you. Most teen deaths are alcohol related, when you drink your defenses are down which can lead to risky behaviors, putting you at risk of STD, rape (yep it happens to guys to, and even worse things then that can happen) I know of a person that hit their head and died. no more second chances. It's nothing to play with, it is dangerous and it can kill you when you have a young mind still forming, that's the real **** Maynard....if you fell like you have a problem and you need to drink to have fun, or because you're Friends are doing it ? Please tell an adult you can trust call AA, it sounds corny but it can save you alot of grief, besides... you can tell that you really are concerned.

Answer 9

Alcohol it a drug. Any of it does damage. The younger people think it makes them act older but older people know better. It is up to you be tipsy is drunk and brain damage that is not reversible has occurred. Give life time so you can make the best judgments from experience. You will understand alcohol and its damages more clearly.

Answer 10

Drinking a lot: You may very well cause yourself liver damage. and it also increases your chances of alocoholism later in life.

you are not in control of your inhibitions when under the influence of alcohol and hterefore take bigger risks, such drinking and driving unprotected sex or stupid dares. so anyone who says it's not really dangerous hasn't really thought about it.

a few special nights a year, and drinking under control probably isn't very bad for you at 15. that's not to say that i recommend i.

A hangover is a sign that you are highly dehydrated and that your body is trying to process all the toxins that the alcohol put in it.