The drinking age of 21 years old in Massachusetts does not keep those who are underage away from alcohol. To the contrary, it transforms alcohol into something “cool” and desirable in the eyes of teenagers and drives them to break the law to obtain it.

A late drinking age also contributes to the lack of education on alcohol use for teenagers. Because it is illegal during one’s teenage years, most adults do not discuss the importance of responsible alcohol consumption and instead focus on the negative consequences of consumption.

Nevertheless, alcohol inevitably becomes a part of most people’s lives. Due to a lack of knowledge, underage drinking and binge drinking have become some of the most serious social problems that young people must grapple with.

The benefits of a younger drinking age can be observed in many foreign countries. In China, for example, the legal drinking age of 18 is not rigidly enforced. People as young as elementary school  easy access to alcohol.

As a result, teenagers view consuming alcohol as something as ordinary as drinking coffee. Just like American teenagers do not binge drink coffee to impress their peers, Chinese teenagers do not see drinking alcohol as something impressive. Therefore, binge drinking is rarely a problem.

In addition, because of this easy access to alcohol, teenagers are educated about alcohol from a young age. They understand the vices of alcohol abuse and understand how to avoid them.

Instead of strictly enforcing a late drinking age and avoiding the topic of consuming alcohol with teenagers, a lower drinking age, proper education and efforts to destigmatize alcohol use are a more reasonable approach.

Want to write for Opinions? Contact us at bhs.sagamore@gmail.com.