The legal drinking age and underage drinking in the United States.

摘要

EACH YEAR THOUSANDS of adolescents in the United States are killed, injured, or suffer other serious consequences of their own or another's underage drinking. The immense societal costs of underage drinking have made it a focus of concern among policymakers and public health officials. In 2006, the US Congress passed the Sober Truth on Preventing (STOP) Underage Drinking Act1 to help states and communities address this chronic problem. In 2007, The Surgeon General's Call to Action to Prevent and Reduce Underage Drinking2 appealed to Americans to do more to stop current underage drinkers from using alcohol and to keep other adolescents from starting. This commentary will review the magnitude and consequences of underage drinking and discuss how increasing the minimum legal drinking age has helped to reduce and prevent the harm caused by drinking among adolescents.