Experts urge government to raise Taiwan's legal drinking age to 21

Taipei, Jan. 4 (CNA) Medical experts on Saturday warned that drinking alone regularly could be an early sign of addiction, and they urged the government to raise Taiwan's minimum legal drinking age to at least 21 to tackle alcoholism in young adults.

Alcohol is an established carcinogen and associated with the build-up of fatty liver and chronic liver cirrhosis, Taipei Tzu Chi Hospital superintendent Chao You-chen (趙有誠) said prior to the start of a seminar on alcohol abstinence and addiction prevention in Taipei.

Never assume everything is fine simply because one's liver shows no apparent problems, Chao warned.

He indicated that, based on past clinical research, alcohol has also been found linked to other types of diseases such as pancreatitis, esophageal cancer, neck cancer, gout, and even hip joint necrosis in young individuals.

Drinking alone frequently could be an early sign of addiction, such as having a few sips while watching TV or being unable to sleep without drinking, Chao said, noting that it was important to be aware of these signs and seek professional help.

Wang Cheng-yi (王正一), an honorary professor with National Taiwan University's College of Medicine, said alcohol dependance has been listed by the World Health Organization (WHO) as one of the contributing factors affecting the world's top 10 diseases.

Citing WHO data, Wang said there is an estimated 2.3 billion drinkers worldwide, and about 1 billion of them -- many of whom began drinking before the age of 15 -- are heavily into alcohol.

In Taiwan, the problem is also serious, he said, citing a youth health behavior survey conducted by the Health Promotion Administration in 2021.

The survey found that the percentage of junior high and high school students who had consumed alcohol within the 30 days prior to being surveyed was 14.1 percent and 30.6 percent, respectively, he said.

To effectively curb young drinkers, the professor suggested that Taiwan should raise the minimum legal drinking age to 21, or even 25, up from the current drinking age of 18, to avoid the common perception that young people should start drinking at age 18.

During the seminar, National Health Insurance Administration Deputy Director-General Chen Lian-yu (陳亮妤) said Taiwan's National Health Insurance system spends about NT$5.3 billion (US$160.94 million) annually on medical issues related to alcohol, including both physiological and psychological problems.

When accounting for additional costs related to treating alcohol-induced injuries such as fractures and those sustained in car accidents, the total expenditure rises to NT$53 billion, Chen said.

Because underage drinking remains a serious issue in Taiwan, the focus should be on enforcing existing regulations and promoting alcohol addiction prevention and treatment, Chen added.