Alcohol misuse presents a major risk for health and well-being throughout the life-span, but youth have a special vulnerability. Alcohol is the most widely used drug by adolescents. For some, this may be one or two isolated occasions of youthful experimentation; for others, the use becomes excessive, placing them in danger of immediate adverse consequences such as accidental injury and alcohol poisoning, or encouraging other high-risk behavior patterns including unprotected sex. Moreover, a pattern of heavy drinking established in adolescence and young adulthood may continue into an adult...