IN modern society, there is a huge problem among teenagers and young adults in the form of alcohol – Nottingham Girls High School decided to investigate whether young people felt pressured to drink.

Many young people think that drinking would make them look more grown up and "cool".

The majority of teens we asked about being pressured to drink admitted they felt the same.

After asking ten young people aged 12-18, eight said that they had either felt pressured to drink alcohol or knew people their age who were.

The other two, however, said they think most young people only drink because they want to, and that in their experience young people rarely pressure others to drink against their will.

With some exceptions, the people we talked to said that they personally didn't drink because they felt that their friends were forcing it upon them, but because they wanted to have a good time.

However they said that a lot of people they know drink to try and look cool and to fit in, when they don't really enjoy it, and mentioned some instances when people they know have got ill from over-drinking.

Ayesha Gaye, 13, of Long Eaton said: "I feel that kids my age are too young to be using alcohol and it can damage their health at this age.

"Nobody's pressured me, but one person I know at school drinks and I think it's quite bad as they've got their whole life ahead and they don't want to ruin their childhood by drinking."

George Bond, 12, a student at Nottingham High School, said: "Young people probably feel pressure because their parents and adults around them all drink, so they naturally want to follow and do it too.

"If your parents don't drink much you probably won't either because it's the example you've been set, but that's just a generalisation."

And a 14-year-old from Nottingham who did not want to be named said: "Of course, not all teenagers drink. I myself have drunk. But it was just some champagne on new year's and at my sister's 18th birthday party. But I've never got drunk or anything like that."

So the question remains – has peer pressure to drink increased for today's youth?

We asked five adults who are either parents or work with teenagers, and they were all in agreement that young people seem to be drinking far more than when they were young with an increasing culture of trying to look tough or rebellious by drinking.

Parent Ian Bond said: "I think that alcohol is being marketed more towards the young today, we never had things like alco-pops when I was younger, so only people grown-up enough to like the taste got into drinking.

"Now I think that by making alcohol that tastes like pop it makes younger teenagers feel like it's OK to drink it."

Some adults questioned think it would be a good idea to introduce alcohol to teenagers at a young age like in France.

Diluted wine at dinner would be a perfect way to introduce them to the taste and to know that maybe alcohol isn't that good after all.