Teens and Alcohol

Today, alcohol is a substance that is consumed weekly in almost every home, in form of beer, wine, liquor or spirits. Kids are often spectators, watching their parents, and when asking to taste, they are told that this is an "adult"-drink. This ofcourse leads to curiosity, and in the teenages, alcohol will more and more become a frequent topic of discussion - which also raises the curiosity. This again leads the teens to their parent's bar-cabinet.

I have to admit this is basically how I got in touch with alcohol the first time I drank.
I was 13, and was under the impression (Note: IMPRESSION) that many of my friends had tried alcohol at that time. Midnight to 1st of May in Norway is a national holiday, which many teenagers use as an occasion to party, gathering mainly outside to meet others.

As I was only 13, and had no idea how much or exactly how alcohol was consumed, i filled a 0,5l coca-cola bottle of ~40% vodka, assuming the amount of consumption would be somewhat equal to what is of a can of soda.

You can probably tell already, that this went horribly wrong. Don't get me wrong, I didn't die or suffer any constant injuries, but hell, I got completely WASTED. I met with some teenagers from the same area where I live, at Kristiansten Festning, which is a historical site, hosting the location of a rather big fortress. As the night continued, I kept drinking. I thought "man, this tastes like shit", so instead of dragging it out, I just poured the whole bottle down. Next thing I remember, I wake up in my bed, 0600 in the morning, with puke EVERYWHERE. Needless to say, the family-dinner the same day was rather uncomfortable. Also, I was hung over for the next 2 days.

This wasn't all negative though. It was a valuable experience. I learnt of the massive effect spirits have on your body - and of course - never drink a whole bottle of 40% vodka all by yourself. It's just bound to go wrong. Especially when you're a skinny 13-year old.

I believe that this is a common problem in Norway - teens that try alcohol for the first time, have no idea how much that they should drink, and how to drink is. My first mistake was ofcourse dosage. The second - I drank it like it was water.

If teens was more informed, and knew about how much is okay for them to drink, I think we would have less problems with youth and alcohol. Streets would be calmer, and less youth would end up being pumped at the hospital.

Today, my relationship with alcohol is way more adult. Not as adult as it perhaps should be, but today i know my limits, both when it comes to beer and spirits. I do however try to drink beer when i first drink, because it's much easier to say when it's enough.

Alcohol and cancer

While reading about alcohol online, I stumbled upon an interesting fact;
Alcohol can cause or promote cancer.

Although it is not proven that alcohol is a carcinogen, it is likely that it might act as one.

A carcinogen is a substance that in any way promotes cancer - for example asbestos or tobacco.

Carcinogen is a substance that is divided into several groups:

Group 1: the agent (mixture) is definitely carcinogenic to humans. The exposure circumstance

entails exposures that are carcinogenic to humans.
Group 2A: the agent (mixture) is probably carcinogenic to humans. The exposure circumstance entails exposures that are probably carcinogenic to humans.
Group 2B: the agent (mixture) is possibly carcinogenic to humans. The exposure circumstance entails exposures that are possibly carcinogenic to humans.
Group 3: the agent (mixture or exposure circumstance) is not classifiable as to its carcinogenicity to humans.
Group 4: the agent (mixture) is probably not carcinogenic to humans.

Under this classification, alcohol is a group 1 carcinogen, along with both asbestos and tobacco.

It is also said that 2-4% of all causes of cancer is caused by alcohol - directly or incorrectly.

Sources:

http://alcoholism.about.com/cs/alerts/l/blnaa21.htm

(photo: Carcinogenic sign Wikipedia Commons)

Youth and Alcohol

Hello. As opposed to most of the people in my class, I am not working in a group, but alone. As we succeed in this project I will write about my personal thoughts on youth and alcohol, both positive and negative thoughts, and ofcourse how it affects our body, physically and mentally.

Emil C.