Some advocated want the U.S. drinking age to be lowered from 21; but research suggests the law is saving lives.
"The evidence is clear that there would be consequences if we lowered the legal drinking age," lead researcher William DeJong, Ph.D., of Boston University School of Public Health, said in a Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs said in the news release.
Studies conducted since 2006 have found the 21 drinking age lowers the rates of drunk driving crashes as well as other alcohol-related hazards such as "suicide, dating violence and unprotected sex," the news release reported.
In the 1970s, 29 states lowered their drinking age; the policy change resulted in a spike in drunk driving accidents. States started to reverse the change and by 1988 federal law required a drinking age of 21.
In 2006 and organization called Choose Responsibility called for a change in the federal law and the media attention prompted medical researchers to re-visit the issue.
A 2011 study found 36 percent of college students admitted to binge drinking (having more than five drinks in one sitting). This was down from 43 percent in 1988, the first year the drinking age was raised back to 21. Over the years the rate of high school seniors who binge drank dropped from 35 percent to 22 percent.
The study suggests having a higher drinking age does help discourage under 21s from drinking.
"There are many young people who do wait until they're 21 to drink," DeJong said.
DeJong also suggests education as a method for discouraging underage drinking as well as tightening up on drinking laws.
"Just because a law is commonly disobeyed doesn't mean we should eliminate it. Clinical trials have found that when college towns put more effort into enforcing the law-and advertise that fact to students-student drinking declines," DeJong said. "Some people assume that students are so hell-bent on drinking, nothing can stop them. But it really is the case that enforcement works."
