Consumo de alcohol durante la adolescencia y el desarrollo temprano, causas y consecuencias

PAUTASSI RM

Ciencia e Investigación

Asociación Argentina para el Progreso de las Ciencias

Lugar: Buenos Aires; Año: 2013 vol. 62 p. 25 - 38

0009-6733

The etiology of alcohol abuse disorders traditionally highlighted the importance of genetic factors. Recent research suggests, however, that alcohol intake is significantly affected by alcohol exposure during prenatal and early postnatal stages of development, as well as by self-administration during adolescence. Alcohol intake during adolescence has immediate negative consequences and enhances the likelihood of developing alcohol abuse and dependence later in life. A negative association has been found between age of drinking onset and likelihood of alcohol-related problems. This article explores some of the factors that can contribute to ethanol drinking in adolescents and to the lingering consequences of that intake. Adolescents are, when compared to adults, relatively insensitive to the sedative, sleep-inducing and motivationally aversive effects of ethanol. These factors serve as barriers that limit escalation in ethanol intake. On the other hand, adolescents are more sensitive than adults to the appetitive, reinforcing effects of ethanol and to the facilitating effects of the drug on social interactions. Alcohol can induce neurotoxicity in the adolescent brain, particularly in brain areas involved in impulse control. Altogether, this research support public policy measures that aim at delaying age of drinking onset. It is also important to differentiate groups of adolescents that exhibit even greater propensity to engage in problematic alcohol consumption.