A survey of 16-17 year old WA school students found:
43.3% reported ‘One of the main reasons I drink is to get drunk’.
66.3% reported ‘It is ok to get drunk occasionally’.
50.1% reported ‘Drinking is the best way of relaxing’.*

During the time it took to conduct the above survey in WA schools, 46,957 12 to 17 year old teenagers had consumed alcohol in WA.*

The following facts and figures are a snapshot of the views and attitudes that young people have towards alcohol. For many, even though they are still technically ‘underage’, drinking a very much a part of their everyday lives.

Their attitudes towards drinking shape not only their futures but more importantly exposes them to the many harms caused by alcohol both directly and directly.

Levels of risky drinking in those aged 18 to 24 years old have increased since 1995.

Indigenous young people are more than twice as likely as their non-Indigenous counterparts to die from alcohol-attributable injury and disease.

Harmful drinking habits in young people:
More than a 25% of 14 to 19 year olds put themselves at risk of alcohol-related harm in the short term at least once a month.1

Over 70% of 14 to 19 year olds consumed alcohol in the previous year despite the fact that the minimum legal drinking age is 18.2

80% of alcohol consumed by people aged 14 to 24 years old is consumed in ways that put the drinker’s (and others’) health at risk of acute harm e.g. falls, assault injuries, road crashes, burns.3

24.3% of WA 12 to 17 year old school students who drank regulalrly in 2088 reported drinking at levels considered to place adults ‘at risk’ of short term harm .4

Alcohol-caused harm among young people
Rates of alcohol-related harm in young people have increased significantly over recent years, particularly those 16 to 24 years old.5

Over the last 10 years, about 15% of all deaths among 15 to 24 year olds were due to risky or high risk drinking.6

References:
1.    Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. 2007 National Drug Strategy Household Survey: first results. Canberra: Australian Institute of Health and Welfare; 2008.
2.    Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. 2007 National Drug Strategy Household Survey: detailed findings. Canberra: Australian Institute of Health and Welfare; 2008.
3.    Chikritzhs T, Catalano P, Stockwell T, Donath S, Ngo H, Young D, et al. Australian alcohol indicators, 1990-2001: Patterns of alcohol use and related harms for Australian states and territories. Perth: National Drug Research Institute and Turning Point Alcohol and Drug Centre Inc; 2003.
4.    Haynes R, Kalic R, Griffiths P, Gunnell A, McGregor C. Australian School Student Alcohol and Drug Survey: Alcohol Report 2008 – Western Australian results. Drug and Alcohol Office Surveillance Report: Number 10. Perth: Drug and Alcohol Office; 2010.
5.    Livingston M. Recent trends in risky alcohol consumption and related harm among young people in Victoria, Australia. Aust N Z J Public Health. 2008; 32:266-271.
6.    Chikritzhs TN, Pascal R. Trends in Youth Alcohol Consumption and Related Harms in Australian Jurisdictions, 1990–2002. Bulletin No. 6. Perth, Western Australia: National Drug Research Institute, Curtin University of Technology; 2004.

* Haynes R, Kalic R, Griffiths P, Gunnell A, McGregor C. Australian School Student Alcohol and Drug Survey: Alcohol Report 2008 – Western Australian results. Drug and Alcohol Office Surveillance Report: Number 10. Perth: Drug and Alcohol Office; 2010.

Writer Helen Splarn. Editor Dr Ramesh Manocha.
Source: The McCusker Centre for Action on Alcohol and Youth (MCAAY)