Teen girls’ drinking is on the rise

The percentage of teenage girls who drink alcoholic beverages is rising faster than that of boys, and on average, the girls take their first drink at age 13, the American Medical Assn. has reported.

In announcing the findings of two surveys, the AMA contended earlier this month that a class of beverages informally known as “alcopops” is partly to blame. The group is warning doctors to educate teenagers about the dangers of such sweet drinks.

The polls indicate that teenage girls are most vulnerable to the marketing of the beverages, which contain 5% to 7% alcohol and have names like Rick’s Spiked Lemonade, Doc Otis’ Hard Lemon Flavored Malt Beverage, Mike’s Hard Lemonade and Hooper’s Hooch Lemon Brew. The drinks come in colorful packaging and are also called “girlie drinks,” malternatives, RTDs (ready to drink) or FABs (flavored alcoholic beverages).

“We’re alarmed and concerned with these findings,” said the AMA’s president-elect, Dr. J. Edward Hill, a family doctor in Tupelo, Miss. “Any alcohol is a drug with side effects. Alcopops are anything but fun and harmless.”

In one survey, 31% of teenage girls said they had drunk an alcopop in the last six months, compared with 19% of boys. The poll found that girls consumed more of all types of alcoholic beverages than boys.

The polls found that half of the girls said they learned of the drinks from magazine ads and half from TV commercials. Only 34% of women 21 and older said they had seen such advertising.

The AMA reported that almost one in six teen girls reported being sexually active after drinking in the last six months, and one in four who have tried alcopops had driven after drinking or had been in a car with a driver who had been drinking.