You’ve probably seen commercials on TV advertising a new brand of vodka, or maybe that old Heineken commercial that still comes on occasionally. These advertisements are there to increase market share in current customers, but when exposed to them, youth audiences as well as adults who have never had alcohol before can fall into the path leading to alcohol addiction.

Although these advertisements are meant to target mature audiences who are current drinkers, there have been several factors that show youth audiences and non-alcoholics are being taken into consideration.

Appealing Advertisements for Children

Many of the advertisements shown on TV, newspapers, billboards and online will use social acceptance as a main hook for the audience. They will often use alcohol consumption to show prestige, appeal to friend groups and popularity.

Back in the 1990’s, companies would use cartoon characters in their advertisements. A good example of this is the Budweiser frog commercials. According to AAFP.org, the Budweiser frogs were more recognizable than Power Rangers in children ages 9 through 11. What these advertisements never show, however, is the children who fell into the clutches of addiction and are now in alcohol rehab centers.

Alcohol Free Adults Taking Up Drinking

Adults have often stressful lives, with their jobs, children, and many other factors, it’s no doubt they are willing to listen to anything that will promise them stress relief and relaxation methods. Alcohol advertisement do just this. Media often overuses the scenario of an adult getting home from a long day at the office, opening a beer and drinking while they watch TV. A stressed adult may see this and try it themselves, thinking it will relax them like it does the character on the program.

However, this may become a regular routine. This leads to an increase in the amount of beer this adult will buy. The more they have available to them, the more they will drink.

An Increase in Consumption and Dangers

Although advertisement only contribute to 11 percent of the increase in consumption, there are teens and adults within that group that have become addicts. No matter how small this number may seem, the amount of people who have fallen victim to alcohol addiction often lose everything due to their addiction.

Finding a way to limit the number of alcohol advertisements a teen sees on TV, as well as seeing the downsides of alcohol consumption as an adult will save countless people from admission into an alcohol rehab center.