Maybe you have heard kids talk about alcohol. Possibly an older kid has even offered you some beer or other booze. So, what’s so fascinating about alcohol?

At first kids might try alcohol because they don’t know how to say “No.” Or maybe they want to try it because they know it’s dangerous. That’s just at first.

Later, kids may have a hard time stopping drinking alcohol. After all, alcohol is a drug.

Do you ever think “everyone” drinks alcohol? Well, let us be the first to tell you: You are wrong about that. Everyone does not drink alcohol. Four out of five 8th graders who were asked said they don’t drink. They are the smart ones.

Over 115,000 people die of alcohol-related diseases and accidents every year. Hundreds of thousands of people are injured because of alcohol.

Even if alcohol does not kill you, it can wreck your life in a million other ways. When people drink alcohol, they often do things they usually would not do. They might say things they’ll really regret later. Plus:

• Alcohol makes people think more slowly
  
• Preteens and teens who drink are more likely to get into fights
  
• Drinkers are more likely to be victims of violence (including robbery and rape)
  
• Teens who drink do worse in school than those who don’t drink
  

Almost as bad are the tons of different ways that alcohol can make you make a fool of yourself – throwing up, showing off, falling down, and saying and doing embarrassing things you would never do sober.