Underage drinkers are more likely to be influenced by alcohol advertisements on television and in magazines, a new study finds.
Alcohol advertisements have faced a lot of criticism for their negative influence on consumers. Shedding more light on the same, researchers from the Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth (CAMY) at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and the Boston University School of Public Health say that such advertisements can dramatically influence underage drinkers more than anyone else.
For the study, researchers surveyed over one thousand youth aged 13-20 recruited from a national Internet panel maintained by Knowledge Networks. All the participants said they had consumed alcohol at least once in the past 30 days. Researchers made note of the brands of alcohol they had consumed and the number of alcohol advertisements they were exposed to through 20 popular television shows.
Researchers found a strong association between consumption of a brand and advertising exposure for that brand. They noted that underage drinkers were three times more likely to drink alcohol brands that advertise on television programs they watch compared to other alcohol brands.
"The question now becomes what do alcohol advertisers do with this information, given the consequences of alcohol consumption in underage youth," said study co-author Michael B. Seigel of the Boston University School of Public Health in a press statement. "Taken together, these studies strengthen the case for a relationship between brand-specific alcohol advertising among underage youth and brand-specific consumption. As alcohol continues to devastate so many young lives, youth exposure to alcohol advertising should be reduced."
Underage drinking is a risk that attracts many developing adolescents and teens. When young people try alcohol, they often don't realize the damaging effects drinking can have on their own lives, their families, and their communities. Aside from being illegal, underage drinking is a widespread public health problem that poses many risks. According to the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention, underage drinkers account for 11 percent of the alcohol consumed in the United States.
The research was supported by a grant from the National Institutes of Health's National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. Findings were published online in the journal Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research.
