When it comes to drinking age many argue that it should be lowered from 21 to 18  without even keeping in mind the consequences and the history behind. During the 1960s and 1970s nearly all the states lowered the drinking age to 18 and according to the national state of health, the number of people who were having car accidents increased being 60 percent of all traffic facilities alcohol related. Over two-thirds of those accidents were people aged 18 to 20.  Even though there are some people who believe that the drinking age, which is 21 years old in the state of Maryland, should be lowered I strongly believe it should remain the same. There are many health concerns when teenagers use alcohol. Also, a lower drinking age could result in an increase in traffic accidents caused by young people drinking and driving.There are many health concerns when teens are using alcohol. Once a person starts using alcohol they can’t stop it even for adults. When using alcohol it slows down the function of all living cells especially in the brain of a person. If teens get to drink alcohol then they can not stop using it because they will be addicted to it and at that time they will be ill because of it. If one is to drink alcohol at a young age this person is put at greater risk of becoming a full-on alcoholic very quickly because once they start to drink it they just feel like drinking, again and again, causing sickness. Drinking alcohol speeds up the heart rate because you are dehydrated from the body getting rid of the poison that the alcohol has in it. Speeding up the heart rate can be very bad for anyone not only for teens. Once alcohol is put into one’s system it is pushed throughout the body and cause multiple health problems that may result in permanent damage to the organ. A young person’s’ brain is very fragile during teenage and young adulthood. The brain is still forming at this time, so therefore when the brain is exposed to the chemicals that alcohol contains it is subject to unhealthy and permanent damage.So if teens were allowed to use alcohol they will create problems for their selves and it shouldn’t be allowed. Another example of alcohol slowing the reaction time and resulting in less control of the individual’s actions is accidents that occur when under the influence of alcohol. On average 1,100, a year die from alcohol-related traffic crashes and another 300 die in non-traffic alcohol-related deaths. Among the 8 million college students in the United States surveyed in one study year, more than 2 million drove under the influence of alcohol and more than 3 million rode in cars with drivers who had been drinking” (“The Minimum Legal Drinking Age Should Not Be Lowered”). The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services reported that “relative to adults, young people who drink and drive have an increased risk of alcohol-related crashes because of their relative inexperience behind the wheel and their increased impairment from alcohol” (“Underage Drinking Is a Serious problem”). Other accidents that can occur due to alcohol are “…poisonings, drownings, falls, burns…” (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services). From a few of these accidents “in 2002, 2,569 individuals ages 16 to 20 died from unintentional injuries other than motor vehicle crashes…approximately 40% of these deaths were alcohol-related” (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services).The common argument that most argue about is that people of the age of 18 “can vote, join the military, sign contracts, and even smoke. Why shouldn’t they be able to drink?” (“Arguments for Lowering”). This is because there is a certain maturity level that one must reach. Eighteen-year-old to twenty-one-year-olds are not mature enough to handle such a chemical as alcohol. Which then we would have to take into consideration that some adults older than 21 are not mature. But these adults would still have to take responsibility for their actions. Most of these adults are responsible and know how to handle their alcohol. Most teenagers, on the other hand, are not at all responsible. They only think about themselves and sometimes they do not think at all.Alcohol is a dangerous substance. People under the age of 21 do not have the responsibility or the right to contain this substance. It is dangerous to the health and overall being of anyone. By putting this substance into one’s body one is putting themselves at risk for multiple things to happen, such as a health complication. The drinking age should stay at 21 because by this age people have grown some responsibility and most of the growth of the brain has stopped by this age.