A Toast for Teens

When is the next party? Someone?s B'day? After exams? Do you think guys who drink are cool?

When is the next beer party coming up? Someone’s birthday? After exams? Do you think guys who drink are real cool?

Here are some facts and answers to questions your peers frequently ask. Check this page before you reach for your next mug of beer. Because, before you can decide whether to drink or not to drink, you need to know the facts about alcohol use. This page is certainly not going to tell you what to do, but it will help you to make smart and sensible decisions.

The High?: the seemingly attractive aspects of alcohol

I am able to talk freely when I drink, it is real fun. Is this because alcohol is a stimulant?

No. Alcohol is a depressant drug. The chemical present in all alcoholic beverages is ethyl alcohol. It is a powerful drug, which depresses the central nervous system. Alcohol in small quantities slows down that part of the brain, which controls inhibitions. So you feel relaxed, talkative and carefree. Thus alcohol reduces the brain’s functioning and does not add to your ability to think, or communicate well. It certainly does not make you more intelligent or more informed.

Inhibitions are the moral restraints, which make us behave in a civilised manner and distinguish them from animals. Lowering of inhibitions means we are doing things out of control. Losing control of oneself is not fun. It is embarrassing.

“Come on, I say! Be a man…. Have one drink” – These are the words we commonly hear. Is drinking associated with masculinity?

No absolutely not. It is no more masculine to drink a lot than it is to eat a lot or to sleep a lot. Besides, a real man does not have to drink to prove he is a man.

(Source: Webhealthcentre.com)