AMA Warns That More Teen Girls are DrinkingDecember 21, 2004
Research Summary
The American Medical Association (AMA) said that drinking is increasing among teenage girls, a result of the alcohol industry's aggressive promotion of sweet, fruity drinks, the Associated Press reported Dec. 17.According to an Internet poll of 741 teens released by the AMA, 13 was the average age when girls tried their first alcoholic drink. By age 18, one in three have tried what the AMA refers to as "alcopops," or sweet, fruity alcoholic beverages.
"The percentage of girls who drink is on the rise faster than boys," said AMA President-elect J. Edward Hill.
Young girls are attracted to the sweet taste of alcopops; Hill said that, "the key to the beverage companies' success, we think, is their aggressive advertising."
In responding to the AMA report, the Washington-based Beer Institute said, "flavored alcohol beverages are not new products in the marketplace, and marketing for these products is directed at adults."
To address the situation, the AMA is urging the medical community to focus on changing the social environment that encourages teens to drink.
"In the past, a lot of the effort went to telling youths not to drink and punishing them if they did," said Dr. Richard Yoast, director of the AMA Office of Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse. "That effort was only marginally successful."
The AMA's campaign includes posters for doctors' offices titled "Girlie Drinks -- Women's Diseases." The poster provides information on the potential risks of drinking, such as brain damage and menstrual disorders.
"We are really trying to get physicians to talk about alcohol with their patients," Yoast said. "If you ask adults, 'Do kids drink?' they'll probably say, 'Oh, yeah.' But when you ask, 'Do they know how many young girls drink?' they may pause."
Boston University School of Public Health 
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