London - A single glass of wine or beer at the age of 14 can send a teenager along the path to binge-drinking, according to scientists.
Early experience of alcohol was found to be a “powerful” predictor for those who will go on to get drunk regularly.
Their likelihood of taking risks and acting impulsively, family history, genetics and brain structure were also part of a wide range of factors that are thought to influence drinking behaviour.
Using the indicators, researchers were able to predict with 70 percent accuracy who from a group of more than 2 000 14-year-olds would be binge drinking by 16.
Study co-leader Dr Hugh Garavan, from the University of Vermont in Canada, said the period between 14 and 16 was “critical” to a youngster’s future drinking behaviour.
“Just delaying people drinking by six months or a year is actually a very, very substantial intervention that would have vast beneficial consequences,” he said.
The findings, published in the journal Nature, may help create an early warning system for those considered high risk. - Daily Mail