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[The following is an exact transcript of this podcast.]
We all know that drinking can cloud judgment. That’s why you should never e-mail an ex after you’ve had a few. But for teenagers, doing dumb things now because of alcohol may be just the start. Because research with animals suggests that drinking during adolescence can set you up for a whole lifetime of bad decisions. The study is in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
People who abuse alcohol when they’re young don’t always make good choices as adults. But it’s been unclear whether the drink gives them the stupids, or whether folks prone to poor choices are predisposed to drink.
One way to tackle the question is by studying alcohol intake in animals, like rats. But rats don’t like to drink. So to make the alcohol more palatable, scientists infused it into a tasty “gel matrix”. Yes, the researchers gave teenage rats Jello shots. And the animals’ decision-making ability stayed impaired well into adulthood…as measured by their tendency to chase after rewards with associated high risk rather than taking a sure thing. So, young party animals, remember the words of Faber’s Dean Wormer: “Drunk and stupid is no way to go through life, son.”
—Karen Hopkin
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7 Comments
Add CommentThe Dean Wormer quote is actually "Fat, drunk and stupid..."
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisDo we really need a PC whitewash of "Animal House"?
Actually, the study implies, that rats who imbibe are more prone to take risks later in life.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisKind of like Columbus, or Da Gama....
So your writer is jumping to rather risky (or idiotic) conclusions.
Perhaps she imbibed early on in life. Or a puritanical old maid.
We, as a society, need to come to the realization that "Alcohol", no matter how you try to dress it up, is a drug, pure and simple. We turn to this "legal" narcotic drug to cover up our own inadequacies of social acceptability, our poor self-esteem of ourselves; usually passed down from parents who suffered the same fate, from their parents, and so on. The consequences, in the end, can be dire- suicide, manslaugter, ruined family lives, hopes and dreams lost, the list goes on. Until we, as a society, can come to terms with our delusions of what we believe of this drug, until we can start being truthful to ourselves and others, about our own faults and learn to stand on our own two feet, without the crutch of alcohol, the lives of many are doomed. The answer is simple, the desire is difficult, the need is grave; there are far too many innocent people paying a terrible price, for those who have lost the beauty of their own lives. We condemn the "Junkie" who destroys his or her own life, with hatred and prison, if they live long enough; but in the same breath, we turn away from the "Alcoholic Junkie" for fear that we may be called upon, to answer for our own consequences of drug use.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisHow do I know all of this? I am a recovering drug addict, an alcoholic, both one and the same. And every day I have to answer for the consequences of my drug use. But I am one of the fortunate ones, many of my dead friends are not. The choice is simple- Be who you are and be proud!
I knew it! Just making youself drunk can't let you get out your own life, you still need to face it.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisRest assured, if the study had involved OBESE adolescent alcohol-drinking rats, we would have run the full quote.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this"Rats don't like to drink."
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisGee, I wonder why? Could be that perhaps, they, unlike humans are able to sense the toxity of it from the beginning and the dangers of ingesting it?
So, we wrap it in a pretty package and hide it from them.
Exactly what we have done to our own species for centuries.
The taste of alcohol is not pleasant. One must be looking for 'desired' effects when pouring the substance into their mouths. Sure, it comes in all flavors and textures, so to be more pleasing to the taste buds. It does not however come in a harmless form.
I am sick of hypocritical views on this subject. It is a very dangerous drug, and it is so, because it is readily available on any street corner, and anyone can purchase and consume as much of it as they wish. There are even establishments that promote use of this drug, where people induldge and then are encouraged to get in a vehicle and drive.
The scientists should pay attention to the rat's first response.
They did not like it or want it. In my opinion, for good reason.
I believe that adults who make poor choices simply were predisposed to drink as teens.
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