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MrPlow writes:

Submitted via IRC for Bytram

Although drinking by U.S. adolescents has decreased during the last decade, more than 20 percent of U.S. high-school students continue to drink alcohol before the age of 14 years. This can have adverse effects on their neurodevelopment. For example, youth who initiate drinking before 14 years of age are four times more likely to develop psychosocial, psychiatric, and substance-use difficulties than those who begin drinking after turning 20 years of age. Little is known about how the age of alcohol-use onset influences brain development. This is the first study to assess the association between age of adolescent drinking onset and neurocognitive performance, taking into account pre-existing cognitive function.

AND see also: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/acer.13503

Source: http://www.newswise.com/articles/early-age-of-drinking-leads-to-neurocognitive-and-neuropsychological-damage

Original Submission