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Standing Tall Against Alcohol
What You Need to Know to Keep Your Preteen Safe
By Gwen Morrison
"Our brains go through important transformations during adolescence," says Sandra Brown, Ph.D., chief of psychology services at the Veterans Affair Medical Center in San Diego, Calif., whose brain research was included in the Harmful Consequences of Alcohol Use on the Brains of Children, Adolescents, and College Students report by the AMA. "This study shows that alcohol use during the adolescent years is associated with damage to memory and learning capabilities as well as to the decision-making and reasoning areas in the brain."
As described in the AMA report, here are some other serious and long-term effects of alcohol on the brain:
- Different toxic effects on adolescent brains than on those of adults
- Ten percent impairment of brain function and adolescent memory
- Poorer visual-spatial functioning
- Poorer retention and retrieval of verbal and nonverbal information
- Short-term or relatively moderate drinking impairs learning more than among adults
- Reduces students' academic performance
- Greater risk for falling further behind in school
- Greater risk of social problems
- Contributes to depression, suicide and violence
- Disturbed sleep cycles increase risk of memory and learning deficits, accidents, impaired social and occupational function
According to Brown, alcohol takes a greater toll on the brain development of those under 21 than on any other age group. It may be surprising to some to learn that adults would have to consume as much as twice the amount of alcohol to suffer the same damage to their brain as adolescents, and that even occasional heavy drinking injures young brains.
The AMA report also shows that teen drinkers scored worse than their non-drinking peers on vocabulary, visual-spatial and memory tests and were more likely to perform poorly in school as a whole. They were also noted to experience more social problems, increased incidence of depression and thoughts of suicide and violence.
"Research is showing more and more that drinking before age 21 – the approximate age when the brain becomes fully adult – can lead to permanent harm to a youth's brain, learning and development," says Dr. Yoast. "The earlier kids start to drink, the greater the likelihood they will have alcohol problems when they become adults."