Science about brain development shows that most people’s brain is not fully developed until the age of 25.  Underage drinking can cause permanent brain damage.  Adults (21+) would have to consume twice as much alcohol to cause similar damage to important memory and learning areas of the brain.

Car crashes are the leading cause of death for 13 to 20 year-olds. More than three young people die in alcohol-related crashes every day.

Drinking alcohol increases the chance that teens will engage in unplanned sexual activity. Teens who drink are less likely to use condoms or other forms of birth control. This can lead to pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections, including HIV.

Alcohol consumption by the offender, the victim, or both increases a teen’s risk of sexual assault. According to the National Institute of Justice, alcohol use is involved in at least half of sexual assaults among college students.

Alcohol, combined with depression and stress, can increase a teen’s risk of committing suicide. Suicide is the third leading cause of death for 13- to 21-year-olds.

People who begin drinking before age 15 are four times more likely to become alcoholics than those who begin at age 21 or older.

Alcohol impairs the area of the brain used for impulse control and judgment.  Therefore, teens are more likely to engage in risky behavior and make poor decisions when under the influence of alcohol.  Often, these behaviors result in accidents, injuries and behaviors that teens later regret.  Incidents such as drunken teens lying down on the double yellow lines of a busy highway, jumping into pools from multiple story buildings, and engaging in reckless behavior are all too common.  Alcohol can make teens act in ways and do things they would normally never do when sober.

Alcohol is involved in about 40 of all residential fire deaths and up to half of all drowning deaths.

Research shows a strong link between alcohol and aggressive behavior, including homicide.  About 696,000 college students are assaulted each year by another student who has been drinking.