NIH’s Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study

Adolescence is the stage of life during which most people begin using alcohol, and it is also a time of considerable social, psychological, and physiological change. The brain, particularly the frontal cortex, continues to develop throughout adolescence and does not fully mature until early adulthood. Adolescent alcohol exposure can impair brain development, compromise short- and long-term cognitive functioning, and increase the likelihood of developing alcohol-related problems during adolescence and later in life. Furthering our understanding of the developing brain—as well as how differences in brain structure and function that exist prior to alcohol and other substance use contribute to substance use disorders—is a high priority for the National Institutes of Health (NIH)