Frequently Asked Questions
We hope this information will inform and support your efforts to provide research-based, effective alcohol and other drug abuse prevention programs, and also help create informed responses to questions regarding the effectiveness of the Minimum Legal Drinking Age (MLDA). We appreciate your feedback on this feature. Please send your comments to HigherEdCtr@edc.org.
The Center also lists a number of references and resources related to the MLDA.
The Center has also compiled FAQs on other specialized topics
Questions:
Answers:
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) estimates that through 2002, the increase in the minimum legal drinking age has saved 21,887 lives in the 50 states.10 NHTSA estimates that the current MLDA will continue to save 1,000 lives each year.14 While alcohol was involved in 60 percent of U.S. vehicular fatalities in 1982, the rate in 2005 stood at 39 percent.13
Most studies show that there is an inverse relationship between MLDA and two outcomes: alcohol consumption and traffic crashes. The success of the 21 MLDA has been achieved with minimal enforcement, yet it has been found that with increased enforcement efforts such as compliance checks, the sale of alcohol to minors can be cut by at least half.15
“After the age-21 MLDA was implemented, alcohol-involved highway crashes declined immediately (i.e., starting the next month) among the 18- to 20-year-old population. Careful research has shown declines are not due to enforcement of and tougher penalties for driving while intoxicated, but are directly a result of the legal drinking age.”20
"Between 1970 and 1975, 29 states lowered their minimum drinking ages. Meanwhile, 13 states kept the legal age at 21."12 Researchers found a marked increase in alcohol-related teen car crashes in the states with reductions. "Once the 21 age was restored…alcohol-involved highway crashes immediately declined in this age group."12
New Zealand lowered its minimum purchase age for alcohol from 20 to 18 in 1999. Researchers noted in 2006 that "…significantly more alcohol-involved crashes occurred among 15- to 19-year-olds than would have occurred had the purchase age not been reduced to 18 years. The effect size for 18- to 19-year-olds is remarkable given the legal exceptions to the pre-1999 law and its poor enforcement."11
After the minimum age was lowered, New Zealand researchers found that this change in the minimum drinking age "…has resulted in increased presentations to the [central city emergency department] of intoxicated eighteen and nineteen year olds. A similar trend was seen in the 15-17 year olds."5 Rates of drunk driving and disorderly conduct have also increased.8
"Many rights have different ages of initiation. A person can obtain a hunting license at age 12, driver’s license at age 16, vote and serve in the military at 18, serve in the U.S. House of Representatives at age 25 and in the U.S. Senate at age 30 and run for President at age 35. Other rights we regulate include the sale and use of tobacco and legal consent for sexual intercourse and marriage. The minimum age of initiation is based on the specific behavior involved and must take into account the dangers and benefits of that behavior at a given age."20
Many youth under age 21 still drink, despite the current legal drinking age. Doesn't that prove that this policy is ineffective?
While some youth may choose to consume alcohol before age 21, studies show that they consume less and suffer fewer secondary effects such as alcohol-related injuries when the drinking age is 21.19
Studies also indicate that delaying onset of drinking will substantially reduce the risk of alcohol problems and dependence later on in life.18 Further, when the legal drinking age is 21, those under age drink less than when the drinking age is lower, and they continue to drink less through their 20s.17
"There is also some 'trickle-down' effect in that when youth get alcohol they often give it to even younger teens."9 "When the legal age is 21, 19- and 20-year-olds can often obtain alcohol from their friends. When the drinking age was 18 and 19, 17- and even 16-year-olds were often able to get alcohol from their friends. If the drinking age is lower, more alcohol will be available to younger high school students and perhaps even middle school students."20
Actually, that is a myth. Despite anecdotal reports of adults teaching youth to drink in moderation, survey data provide no evidence that European youth are more responsible about alcohol consumption than American youth. A recent study compared rates of alcohol consumption and alcohol-related problems in the United States with those in Europe and found that both rates and frequency of drinking among European youth are higher than in the United States. Additionally, about half of the European countries surveyed had higher rates of intoxication among their youth.7
Further, "…a greater percentage of young people from nearly all European countries in the survey report drinking in the past 30 days. For a majority of these European countries, a greater percentage of young people report having five or more drinks in a row.6 Additionally, per capita consumption of alcohol and cirrhosis death rates are both higher in France and Italy, two countries with a lower legal drinking age.”20
Reports of fewer alcohol-related crashes among European youth are likely due to youth driving "…less frequently in Europe than in the United States. Compared with the United States, Europeans have higher legal driving ages, more expensive automobiles and greater access to public transportation. Looking beyond traffic crashes, however, European countries have similar or higher rates of other alcohol-related problems compared with the United States."20
“European countries are now looking to the United States for research and experience regarding the age-21 policy. Europeans are initiating the debate on the most appropriate age for legal access to alcohol.”20
I've read that if we educate teens about using alcohol safely starting at age 18, that will encourage responsible drinking. Is that true?
Alcohol education programs have been in place for years and have been proven by numerous studies to be ineffective at reducing high-risk drinking and other risky behavior when used in isolation. 18 20
Studies suggest that the adolescent brain goes through a series of structural and functional changes that may make it more susceptible to long-term impairments due to alcohol use. These dynamic changes affect the planning, decision-making, impulse control, voluntary movement, and speech-production processes.18
Specifically, the American Medical Association reports that "…frontal lobe development and the refinement of pathways and connections continue until age 16, and a high rate of energy is used as the brain matures until age 20."1
"The hippocampus handles many types of memory and learning and suffers from the worst alcohol-related brain damage in teens. Those who had been drinking more and for longer had significantly smaller hippocampi (10 percent)."1
According to an ABC News/Washington Post poll conducted in 2005, the majority (78 percent) of Americans, youth and adults, support the age 21 drinking law.4 In fact, 73 percent of young adults under the age of 34 oppose allowing 18- to 20-year-olds to drink.4 A 2001 Associated Press poll found that fully three-quarters of adults and teens alike thought the drinking age should be enforced more vigorously.3
"The current age restriction was signed into law by President Reagan on July 17, 1984. Its support today is nearly identical to its level then -- 79 percent in a Gallup poll in June '84."4
In addition to the minimum legal drinking age, there are several approaches and areas of strategic intervention that are backed by research and that have been shown to be effective. Indeed, studies continue to show that employing a combination of interventions, such as MLDA paired with strengthening enforcement efforts or increasing beer taxes, are most promising.17 20 To learn more and begin the process of finding the strategies that will be effective on your campus, see General Resources, below.
MLDA Resources
To learn more about the research supporting the minimum legal drinking age, see:
American Medical Association & A Matter of Degree (AMA & AMOD). (2001). Addressing the minimum legal drinking age (MLDA) in college communities. Retrieved January 24, 2007, from http://www.alcoholpolicymd.com/alcohol_and_health/study_legal_age.htm
Wagenaar, A. C., Toomey, T. L. (2002). Effects of minimum drinking age laws: Review and analyses of the literature from 1960 to 2000. Journal of Studies on Alcohol, Supplement 14, 206-225.
General Resources
To learn more about implementing effective prevention strategies on your campus, see the following Web sites:
U. S. Department of Education's Higher Education Center for Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse and Violence Prevention:
http://www.higheredcenter.orgNIAAA Task Force on College Drinking:
http://www.collegedrinkingprevention.govA Call to Action: Changing the Culture of Drinking at U.S. Colleges: http://www.collegedrinkingprevention.gov/NIAAACollegeMaterials/TaskForce/TaskForce_TOC.aspx
National Academy of Sciences and Institute of Medicine Report: Reducing Underage Drinking: A Collective Responsibility
http://www.higheredcenter.org/iom-report.html
1. American Medical Association (AMA). (2004). Harmful consequences of alcohol use on the brains of children, adolescents, and college students. Retrieved April 5, 2007, from http://www.ama-assn.org/ama/pub/category/9416.html
2. American Medical Association & A Matter of Degree (AMA & AMOD). (2001). Addressing the minimum legal drinking age (MLDA) in college communities. Retrieved January 24, 2007, from http://www.alcoholpolicymd.com/alcohol_and_health/study_legal_age.htm
3. The Associated Press (AP). (2001, July 5). Teen drinking poll. USA Today. Retrieved June 13, 2007, from http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2001-07-05-drinking-poll.htm
4. Cohen, J. (2005). Poll: Public back legal drinking age limit. ABC News/Washington Post. Retrieved April 16, 2007, from http://abcnews.go.com/Health/PollVault/story?id=941810
5. Everitt, R., & Jones, P. (2002). Changing the minimum legal drinking age—its effect on a central city emergency department. The New Zealand Medical Journal, 115(1146), 9–11.
6. Grube, J. W. (2001). Comparison of drinking rates and problems: European countries and the United States. Calverton, MD: Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation, Office of Juvenile Justice Enforcing the Underage Drinking Laws Program.
7. Grube, J. W. (2005). Youth drinking rates and problems: A comparison of European countries and the United States. Calverton, MD: Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation, Office of Juvenile Justice Enforcing the Underage Drinking Laws Program.
8. Join Together. (2007). Alcohol crashes rose when N.Z. drinking age fell, study says. Retrieved May 26, 2007, from http://www.jointogether.org/news/research/summaries/2007/alcohol-crashes-rose-when.html
9. Jones-Webb, R., Toomey, T., Miner, T., Wagenaar, A. C., Wolfson, M., & Poon, R. (1997). Why and in what context adolescents obtain alcohol from adults: A pilot study. Substance Use & Misuse, 32, 219–228.
10. Kindelberger, J. (2005). Calculating lives saved due to minimum drinking age laws. Traffic Safety Facts: Research Notes. Retrieved June 12, 2007, from http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Pubs/809860.PDF
11. Kypri, K., Voas, R., Langley, J., Stephenson, B., Begg, D., Tippetts, S., & Davie, G. (2006). Minimum purchasing age for alcohol and traffic crash injuries among 15- to 19-year-olds in New Zealand. American Journal of Public Health, 96(1), 126–131.
12. Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD). (2004, Spring). “21” turns 20. DRIVEN Magazine. Retrieved May 30, 2007, from http://www.madd.org/stats/8916
13. Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD). (2007). Total traffic fatalities vs. alcohol related traffic fatalities – 1982-2005. Retrieved June 14, 2007, from http://www.madd.org/stats/1298
14. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). (2001). Alcohol and highway safety 2001: A review of the state of knowledge. Retrieved June 12, 2007, from http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/people/injury/research/AlcoholHighway/
15. National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA). (2006). Early drinking linked to higher lifetime alcoholism risk. Retrieved June 12, 2007, from http://www.niaaa.nih.gov/NewsEvents/NewsReleases/earlydrinking.htm
16. O'Malley, P. M., & Wagenaar, A. C. (1991). Effects of minimum drinking age laws on alcohol use, related behaviors and traffic crash involvement among American youth: 1976–1987. Journal of Studies on Alcohol, 52, 478–491.
17. Ponicki, W. R., Gruenewald, P. J., & LaScala, E. A. (2007). Joint Impacts of Minimum Legal Drinking Age and Beer Taxes on US Youth Traffic Fatalities, 1975 to 2001. Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research, 31(5), 804–813.
18. Task Force of the National Advisory Council on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. A Call to Action: Changing the Culture of Drinking at U.S. Colleges (Washington, D.C.: National Institutes of Health, 2002)
19. Wagenaar, A. C. (1993). Minimum drinking age and alcohol availability to youth: Issues and research needs. In: Hilton, M.E., Bloss, G., eds. Economics and the Prevention of Alcohol-Related Problems. Bethesda, MD: National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, 175–200. (NIAAA Research Monograph No. 25, NIH Publication No. 93-3513).20. Wagenaar, A. C., Toomey, T. L. (2002). Effects of minimum drinking age laws: Review and analyses of the literature from 1960 to 2000. Journal of Studies on Alcohol, Supplement 14, 206-225.
Last Update: June 19, 2002