Coping with Teenage Drinking Problems

On The Point, a discussion about underage drinking, and some of the programs in place on the cape and islands designed to prevent teens from drinking. Even though the legal drinking age in the United States is 21, more than a quarter of all alcohol consumed here is drunk by people under the age of 20, according to Columbia University's National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse. Statistics from the Centers for Disease Control show that young people who begin drinking before age 15 are four times more likely to develop alcohol dependence and are two and a half times more likely to become abusers of alcohol than those who begin drinking at age 21. Joining us to discuss underage drinking here on the Cape, Coast and Islands is Kathy Quatromoni, Director of Community Programs at the Barnstable County DA’s Office, Patricia Mitrokostas, Director of Prevention at Gosnold on Cape Cod, and Ray Tamasi President and CEO of Gosnold. Also, we speak withSam Bluestein, high school student and founder of the group Falmouth Help Avoid Disaster.