Have you ever wondered why you have to wait until your 21st birthday to legally drink alcohol? The truth is, nothing really changes within the hours of your birthday that makes you a responsible drinker, but the United States has enacted this minimum drinking age for a reason. After prohibition in 1934, the original ABC act stated that the legal age for purchase, possession, or consumption of alcohol was 21 years of age. According to the American Medical Association that rule changed in the years between 1970 and 1975. During those 5 years, 29 states dropped their drinking ages to 18, 19, or 20. They also dropped the age for voting, and other various activities that were once restricted to adults. Some states dropped the drinking age for only certain beverages. For example, in Virginia, the Legal Drinking Age (LDA) lowered from 21 to 18 for beer only. All wine and liquor was reserved for customers 21 and over.
After states began loosening their restrictions on youth alcohol consumption, scientists used the circumstances to experiment. They saw a higher percentage of automobile accidents, specifically leading to the death of teens. When all was said and done, scientists linked the rising percentage of fatal teen driving accidents to the lowered minimal legal drinking age. Once the reports were public, citizen advocacy groups began to campaign for a higher minimum drinking age. 16 states responded to the cries of the public and restored their MLDA to 21. The other states were concerned about raising their drinking age, because they assumed that youth would just travel to another state and buy alcohol there.
The Federal Government became concerned with this hot topic and debate among the states, and decided to establish the Uniform Drinking Age Act. This act declared that the federal government would reduce federal transportation funds to states that did not raise their MLDA back to 21. States responded, as expected, by bringing their drinking age back up. In Virginia, for example, the state government slowly raised their drinking age, by first saying that only on-premises drinking was allowed for 18 year olds. 19-year-olds and older were allowed to consume alcohol off of the premises where it was sold. In 1983, Virginia heightened their alcohol consumption age to 19. It wasn't until 1987 that this particular state gave in and raised the MLDA to 21.
Scientists have continued to study how the MLDA influences auto accidents, and at least 70 studies on the subject are published to date. All the researcher studies have found that a higher MLDA reduces the amount of teenage driving accidents significantly, and lowers the amount of fatalities nationwide. A higher MLDA also results in fewer alcohol-related problems among youth, and saves the lives of about 1,000 youth each year who would have died from something alcohol-related. One 1993 study set out to argue that youth still find ways to purchase and consume alcohol, even if it is not illegal.
Still, because the states heavily discourage this and minors who try to purchase intoxicating beverages can be prosecuted, the amount of teen drinking has dropped significantly. Teens are much less likely to drink and drive, knowing that they face serious punishments if they are discovered. It is important to submit to the MLDA. The drinking age has proven beneficial to our nation, and those that try to challenge it often end up in car accidents, or charged with an under-age DUI. America has a zero-tolerance policy on teen DUIs, so it is best to avoid alcohol to avoid punishments like license revocation, fines, and jail time.