CANCER, CANCER, CANCER just that word repeated three times is enough to scare the life out of me personally. When we are young however, we have a feeling of invincibility. It takes a lot of growing up and often some very hard lessons before we understand the dangers of our actions.
ALCOHOL RELATED ACCIDENTS, ALCOHOLISM, LIVER DISEASE just those words linked together once again scare the life out of me. Underage drinking is another thing that just too many people do when they are young and think well bad things happen to other people but not to me.
What do these two topics have in common? Well to be blunt, they are against the law and could cost you your hard earned money or your freedom. That to me is not the most important point I am trying to make. I am more concerned about what happens to you in the future. Will you live to get past the mistakes of your youth? Statistics say that most teenagers will survive to adulthood even if they use tobacco or alcohol. However, what will the future hold for you if you don't take care of yourself? What kind of damages do you do to your one and only body? Most teenagers who drink and smoke at an early age end up with a lifetime habit that they are just unable to stop once they start.
Consider this, coronary heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States (2004 Surgeon General Report) if you smoke you are 2-4 times more likely to develop this disease versus if you do not choose to smoke. Are you willing to risk those odds or make that kind of bet? I know I am not willing to risk it.
What about drinking? Why is it a big deal for a kid to take a drink? What is the harm in just one or two beers? Well for starters it is against the law. However, once again that is not the most important thing. Did you know that young adults who start drinking at 15 years or younger are five times more likely to become alcoholics?(The NSDUH Report Oct 2004) There are just too many health problems associated with alcohol abuse to mention in this short article but I am sure that you can imagine many.
Our message is simple, to tell you the truth about the dangers of using alcohol and tobacco. If you must do it, do so when you are able to do it legally. If you can't wait carefully consider what you risk, your money, your freedom and maybe your life.
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DUI costs a LOT!!! You may not care about wrecking your car, or someone else's, or hurting yourself or others, but THINK about how much you will pay for that DUI. It cost me at least $2500 PLUS insurance tripling to $2400 for 6mos., that is once you get your license back which is a whole other set of hoops to jump through... Just don't drink and drive. Period. You'll save yourself a ton of money & headache. Get a DD (designated driver) before you go out partying or pay someone (a friend, college kid, etc.) to do it for the night. It's worth every penny!
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