But this idea seems to be refuted by the statistics of other studies, such as this one from US News & World Report, which counts the daily amount of drinks consumed by people under and over the legal age to consume alcohol (in this case, 15-19 year olds). Here, the France ranks 10th with an average of 3.4 drinks per day. It is important to remember that if you want to legally buy and consume alcohol in France, you must be 18 or 16 years old if you want to have a drink or two and you are with adults/in a family environment. Identifying with a group, wanting to be like others, is part of adolescence and the process of identity formation. While this particularly affects adolescents, adults are not excluded. Let`s take the example of a birthday or a simple dinner with friends where we felt uncomfortable refusing a glass of alcohol as an aperitif, or where we ourselves thought that the one who refused to drink was a flap of joy. The minimum legal age for alcohol consumption in France is 18 or 16 if the person is in the presence of adults (generally understood as family members). There was an exception for beer and wine, but this has not been the case since 2009. Is it less dangerous to drink only beers? Either way, excessive alcohol consumption in France doesn`t seem to be the highlight it often is in countries like the United States, where it`s normal to think you`ll get drunk when you`re 21 (the legal drinking age), at home parties, universities/fraternities, and sorority events, etc. Similarly, someone who cannot help but drink often and a lot at each party he goes to, can also question his relationship to the product and the meaning he gives to the party. What is the legal drinking age in your country? When you drink, do you have a popular French alcoholic beverage – or want to try? With this story, it seems strange that today in France there is a legal minimum age for alcohol consumption. But the culprit, one might say, is a better understanding of the effects of alcohol on the development of the body and brain. An alcohol consumption age of 16 was set at the end of the 20th century.
But something happened to change that. Nevertheless, excessive alcohol consumption was seen as a problem that took hold of the nation. In 2009, the Minister of Health and Sports Roselyne Bachelot adopted a law that sets the current legal age for alcohol consumption in France – 18 years for the free consumption and purchase of alcohol and 16 years for consumption accompanied by adults (but not for the purchase of alcohol). Thank you for that, very interesting, well documented. I was looking for the age of majority and alcohol laws, as I myself live in France with 2 teenage girls. Fascinating that alcohol was still served in high schools until 1981, I didn`t know it! I love living in France and from an English-speaking point of view – full of surprises! This may seem surprising. After all, France has a reputation for being a country of wine lovers. You may have even heard that there is no legal age for alcohol consumption.
And you wouldn`t have been wrong just a few decades ago! But when it comes to alcohol consumption laws, the France has changed in interesting and often surprising ways. “Remember that at any age it is important to always drink in moderation” The legal minimum age was raised from 18 to 21 in December 2017, but the law was only enforced on October 16, 2018. Resellers have 18 months to get used to the new regulations. After this period, the crime is sentenced to 10,000 ringgit and up to 2 years in prison. The risk is the same regardless of the type of alcohol. 1 standard glass (amount served in cafes) contains 10 g of pure alcohol and increases the blood alcohol level (blood alcohol level) to 0.2 g to 0.3gr / l in the blood (see effects). For example, this site on alcohol consumption in France, dated early 2020, contains some interesting and useful statistics. But as you read, you realize that since the site is linked to the public health department, the article was set up to warn people about alcohol abuse.
