Most people have already heard the traditional speech about how drinking at a young age is a terrible decision. In drug and alcohol prevention talks, everyone mentions that teens are in their mental and physical developing years. Studies have shown that alcohol is not good for growing bodies. Yet, surprisingly enough, there’s still more to discover about how alcohol can dramatically change a young person’s life. Reuters recently reported on one of these new findings: Early exposure to alcohol may lead to heavy drinking later in life.

The lab study was performed with teenage rats. According to the study, it only took three exposures to alcohol at an adolescent age for the rats to build up a liking for the drink. The rats that were given the most to drink in the beginning went on to become the heavy drinkers.

It’s interesting to note that the study didn’t just test the rodents on their behavior towards alcohol. The scientists also tested the rats to see how they respond to stress and to also determine their “novelty-seeking behavior” level. Surprisingly, rats who liked to try new things weren’t necessarily the ones who became heavy drinkers. According to the tests, stress and a desire for excitement did not correspond with drinking choices and behaviors. One scientist involved with the study said, “This suggests that there are other characteristics that we as scientists should be looking for, that are related to the early experiences of drinking.”

What could those other characteristics be? The future insights will be fascinating to know, and hopefully they will also lead us to additional methods to help impede teen alcoholism.

If you or somebody you know is struggling with addiction, please call us today at 888.730.0905 to learn how we can help, or fill out the Contact Us form and somebody will be in touch with you promptly.