Youth Drinking Worse in Europe than U.S., Study Says

Youth Drinking Worse in Europe than U.S., Study Says
November 22, 2005

Research Summary

European teenagers drink more alcohol more often than their American counterparts, and get drunk more frequently, as well, according to researchers from the PIRE Prevention Research Center.

Philanthropy News Network reported Nov. 17 that researchers said data on youths ages 15-16 from 35 European countries showed that every nation in Europe except Turkey had higher teen binge-drinking rates than the U.S.

"The claim that Europeans learn to drink moderately and safely in a family setting has been used by many in the United States to argue for lowering the drinking age," said report author Joel Grube. "But our research shows that premise is a myth. Easy access to alcohol seems to allow young people to drink heavily and in a risky fashion, whether in Europe or the United States. Raising the drinking age in the United States has been an extremely effective public health and safety policy. Based on our research, weakening that policy would be a serious mistake."

The teen binge-drinking rate in the U.S. is about 22 percent, compared to 60 percent in Denmark, 57 percent in Germany, 54 percent in Great Britain, 34 percent in Italy, and 28 percent in France, the PIRE report said.

The study data came from the European School Survey Project on Alcohol and Other Drugs and the U.S. Monitoring the Future survey. The report, "Youth drinking rates and problems: A comparison of European countries and the United States," is available online.

COMMENTS ON THIS ARTICLE:

Posted by william on 28 Dec 08 06:41 AM EST

this study is complete RUBBISH. It was obviously cobbled together by a bunch of republican bible bangers, hell bent on consolidating there control by playing on our fears. I've traveled through EVERY SINGLE COUNTRY IN EUROPE and not ONCE EVER saw a drinking problem. You people are just bullheaded liars.

Posted by Baker on 01 Aug 09 01:56 PM EDT

William, when reasoning from specific instances, there must be enough specific instances and a significant variety of specfic instances for your claim to be logical. Your claim that because you have traveled through every country in Europe and did not personally see this problem is a hasty generalization. It is based only on a few personal experiences which may not have exposed you to the behaviors of the broader populations of those countries. See http://www.unc.edu/depts/wcweb/handouts/fallacies.html for more information on logical fallacies.

Posted by Natalie Gates on 20 Oct 09 04:30 PM EDT

I am from England and although I cannot comment on other European cities personally I am not surprised by these claims and can say Britain has a drinking problem. Teenagers drink on the streets from the age of 12 and then vandalise property and cause trouble. I started going clubbing regularly from the age of 16, as did all of my friends, my family and everybody else I have ever known who grew up here. Drinking is part of our culture and yes it does mean we are a binge drinking nation. However I believe people will find a way to access alcohol whatever their age and in spite of any laws. Education may inform people of the dangers but it won't alter what has become our culture and our identity. I drink 2 glasses of red a night, I go out for a meal at least twice a week and will then finish at least a bottle of wine, as does my husband and my friends and even my mother-in-law. I have two young daughters and yes I will allow them to go clubbing when they reach 16. However I will try and prevent any other drinking below this age and obviously try teach them to drink sensibly as opposed to downing as much vodka as they possibly can before passing out, as i once did every Friday night.

Posted by Rachel on 23 Nov 09 12:18 AM EST

I am from the United states and I am 17 so I can not legally drink yet, but I think that it helps having the legal drinking age at 21. Yes, it maybe true that you can get your hands on alcohol no matter what the legal age is, but it is a proven fact that your brain is not done devoloping until you are 21 years old. Alcohol and drugs can only hinder this development.

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