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Straight Talk About Alcohol
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Recent
studies have found that heavy exposure of the adolescent brain to alcohol may
interfere with brain activity and brain development.
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Every day, 3 teens die from drinking alcohol.
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Approximately
6 teens die every day of non-driving alcohol related causes such as homicide,
suicide, and drowning.
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As a teenager, you get a lot
more freedom and with that freedom comes responsibility. It’s time to make your
own decisions.
Many decisions you make today will affect your life for years
to come, so they can’t be taken lightly.
When facing decisions, knowing all the facts can steer you in the right direction.
Choosing not to drink alcohol underage may be a difficult decision, but it is the
right choice to make. Underage drinkers risk not only their own health and
well-being, but physically and emotionally they can hurt their family, friends and
strangers.
Alcohol’s Physical Effects
Alcohol is absorbed into the bloodstream
where it is carried to the rest of the body. Alcohol is a depressant.
Alcohol can affect:
Heart/cardiovascular system – alcohol causes small blood vessels beneath
the skin to dilate. The dilation of blood vessels causes heat loss and drops
in body temperature. Despite popular belief, it is very dangerous to drink
alcohol to ‘warm up” when you are exposed to the cold.
Brain – alcohol depresses the central nervous system.
It can impair coordination, balance, concentration, reflexes, vision, reason and
judgment.
Stomach/intestines – The stomach begins to secrete acid as soon
as alcohol is introduced. As the blood-alcohol level rises, secretions of
the digestive hormone decrease, leading to an irritation of the intestinal wall
and eventually diarrhea.
Pancreas – Blood sugar levels are controlled by the production of insulin in the pancreas. The pancreas produces extra insulin with the presence of alcohol. The additional insulin can cause a rapid drop of the body’s blood sugar level and result in symptoms of hypoglycemia – dizziness, headaches, depression, difficulty concentrating, trembling, heart palpitations, loss of coordination and stomach aches.
Teenage girls who binge drink are up to 63 percent more likely to become teen mothers
Fitting In – Without Alcohol
Teens who drink often blame it on peer pressure.
But remember, part of maturing is taking responsibility for your own actions.
Nobody ever said growing up would be easy, but keeping a few things in mind may
make life a little easier.
- Focus on the positive things in life.
Develop your talents and spend time doing activities you enjoy.
- Think through the situation.
You might be tempted to act first and think later but taking those extra few minutes
to think about the consequences can prevent hours of regret.
- Choose your friends
carefully. A true friend would not pressure you to do anything you don’t want
to do. Although some people might claim “everybody drinks,” it’s not true.
There is some truth in the old adage, “You are known by the company you keep.”
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