Should my child drink alcohol? (2024)

FAQs

Should kids be able to drink? ›

The age at which a child drinks matters in terms of the negative effects of alcohol. If a parent or one in a parenting role can delay the age at which their child initiates alcohol use, the parent can greatly reduce repercussions of alcohol on their child's brain development.

“Medical advice suggests that no child should be drinking before the age of 15 and between the ages of 15 to 17 they should be having no more than two or three units a week.”

There is no acceptable amount of alcohol that is considered safe for children. Children metabolize alcohol faster than adults. This means that even a small amount of alcohol can lead to higher blood-alcohol concentrations. This can lead to low blood sugar, coma, and problems regulating body temperature.

Children who drink alcohol can act drunk, just like adults do. They might stagger when they walk, speak without making sense, or seem sleepy. They might vomit because alcohol can irritate the stomach. Breathing and heart rate might slow down to a dangerous level.

The most important difference, however, is that Prime Energy Drinks contain 200 milligrams of caffeine per can, making them unsuitable for children and teens, according to the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.

Youth who start drinking before age 15 years are six times more likely to develop alcohol dependence or abuse later in life than those who begin drinking at or after age 21 years. Center for Behavioral Health Statistics and Quality.

In the United States, the minimum legal age to purchase alcoholic beverages is 21 years of age; the two exceptions are Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands where the age is 18.

Alcohol is one of the leading risk factors for death and disability in young people ¹. Although people usually first start drinking alcohol at around 15-16 years of age ², this can vary, and adolescents often follow different patterns or “trajectories” of drinking.

In Japan, the legal adult age is 20. Japanese law prohibits individuals under the age of 20 to drink alcohol or smoke. Regardless of age, you must not force anyone to drink or smoke as it may cause serious health and social consequences.

During exercise, especially in hot weather, kids can become dehydrated and a sports drink may seem like a suitable thing to reach for to replenish fluids and electrolytes, but the American Academy of Pediatrics does not recommend them for kids during routine or moderate activity.

Why shouldn't kids drink? ›

Drinking at a young age can lead to alcohol problems later. Teens who drink are more likely to be sexually active earlier and to have unprotected sex. Teens who drink are more likely to have problems in school. Drinking can hurt athletic performance.

According to a Northwestern Medicine study published in the journal Aging, scientists found that consuming certain types of alcohol over long periods of time as well as binge drinking both speed up biological aging.

The rate of current alcohol consumption increases with increasing age according to the 2022 National Survey on Drug Use and Health from almost 2% among 12-13 year olds to nearly 15% at ages 16-17, and almost 32% among 18-20 year olds. Fewer American teens are drinking than ever before, reaching new lows in 2023.

Energy drinks are not recommended for children and teens because of the amount of caffeine, sugars and other ingredients (like herbs and amino acids) they contain. Caffeine is a drug naturally found in the leaves and seeds of many plants. It's also artificially made and added to certain foods.

Even if a beer has zero alcohol — which isn't the case for all nonalcoholic beers, which sometimes have trace amounts of less than 0.05% alcohol — pediatricians say that it's best not to let kids sip on nonalcoholic booze.

Opponents of lowering the MLDA argue that teens have not yet reached an age where they can handle alcohol responsibly, and thus are more likely to harm or even kill themselves and others by drinking prior to 21. They contend that traffic fatalities decreased when the MLDA increased. Read more background…

Even if a beer has zero alcohol — which isn't the case for all nonalcoholic beers, which sometimes have trace amounts of less than 0.05% alcohol — pediatricians say that it's best not to let kids sip on nonalcoholic booze.

"Early onset drinking is by far the best predictor of developing alcoholism in the future." Studies show that kids who start drinking before the age of 15 are six times more likely to have problems with alcohol than those who don't start drinking until they turn 21. It doesn't help if parents provide the booze.