Alcohol

Teenagers are probably the biggest group attracted to the fascination with drinking alcohol. The idea of a group of under-twenty one getting drunk in a friend’s house or a local park has become a part of both the media and everyday life.
A lot of teens who drink, don't think about the long-term affects it has on the body. The long term effects of alcohol in excessive quantities is capable of damaging nearly every organ and system in the body. It is believed that the human brain is finished developing before adolescence is reached, but new research shows that is not true. According to the AAAS ongoing brain research shows that important brain development takes place well into a person’s twenties. The important brain regions and their interconnections develop into early adulthood. The brain consists of over 100 billion neurons, each of which makes tens of thousands of connections. Alcohol damages and kills neurons and perhaps alter developing parts of the adolescent brain that are still forming.
I think people are driven to use drugs and alcohol mainly because people around them do it or they have nothing better to do. I think many teens do it to fit in or to be less uptight and loosen up around there friends. I don't think alcohol should be banned completely but I think people should look out for teens and keep them from doing it.