Alcohol In The Movies May Influence Just How Much You're Drinking, Too

Could watching movies where alcohol is consumed in them ultimately influence how much you might drink during or afterward? 

New findings published in the journal Pediatrics found that adolescents are more likely to indulge in alcohol or substance abuse if they are watching characters on screen who are partaking in risky behaviors.

"Kids who are more likely to drink or are already drinking may seek out more films with drinking in them," said Dr. Victor Strasburger, an emeritus professor of pediatrics at the University of New Mexico School of Medicine, via Health Day.

For the study, researchers at the University of Bristol studied data on more than 5,000 adolescents who were the average age of 15. All participants were part of Bristol's Children of the 90s study.

They were categorized according to whether they had seen a small amount of alcohol in a movie (for less than 28 minutes) or a lot in a movie (at least 64 minutes) or somewhere in between. They were also required to answer questions about how often they drank alcohol.

Findings revealed that adolescents with the highest exposure to alcohol use in films were 1.2 times more likely to have tried alcohol than those who were exposed less and about 1.7 times more likely to binge drink, as well.

Furthermore, the study showed that those who faced the highest exposure were about 2.4 times more likely to drink weekly and twice as likely to have alcohol-related issues than those who were less stressed out.

Could rating films based on alcohol consumption by involved actors helped to reduce the number of alcohol consumption in adolescents?

Researchers are starting to believe that it might be good to include a pediatrician and child psychologist on the Motion Picture Association of America board to help determine various ratings for certain things.

For more great science stories and general news, please visit our sister site, Headlines and Global News (HNGN).