Drunk driving is a serious problem and is the cause of numerous deaths every year. Add drugs to this equation and you have an even deadlier combination. From a more personal perspective, drunk driving deaths can change people's lives forever. A drunk driving related death is so emotionally powerful because it suddenly takes the life of a human being from this world through easily preventable means. Unfortunately for me and for many people dear to me, I had to live this experience. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay I won't delve into the dangers of drunk driving because they are pretty obvious; driving while intoxicated causes death. In 2013, a total of 32,719 automobile-related deaths occurred in the United States1. In the same year, 10,076 deaths related to drunk driving occurred2; this means that 30.79%, approximately 1/3, of car-related deaths also had to do with drunk driving. A larger and less obvious problem with drunk driving is the combination of drugs and alcohol and the potential harm that can be caused. When you mix alcohol with drugs, you usually exaggerate the effects of both substances. For example, drinking alcohol and taking Adderall alone causes behavioral changes and other problems, and when mixed, all these abnormal changes in the body are multiplied. Alcohol is a depressant and Adderall is a stimulant, and when mixed, both substances fight in the body. Drinking alcohol delays the effects of alcohol and can make the user think they can drink more. This can easily lead to excessive drinking, alcohol poisoning, and risky behavior. Alcohol and drug prevention is another major social problem that can be better prevented. “Drugs and alcohol are bad and I will never do them.” (Every child ever). While this is not a true quote that I have received from every child in the history of the world, it is generally true now days. For the past 30 years3 America has tried to keep young people, typically Kingergarden-12 kids, from using drugs and drinking alcohol. While programs like DARE are generally effective with the younger portion of that group, they are not as effective with high school students. We, as America, use many scare tactics to try to steer children away from drug and alcohol use. This may work in the early years of high school, such as freshmen and sophomores, but as students begin to get older and are exposed to these substances there is a good chance they will begin to experiment with them. This is not an unusual thing to happen, kids should be expected to experiment with drugs and alcohol. Everyone was their age at some point and went through the same situations. So instead of trying to completely terrorize these impressionable teenagers, I believe a DARE-like program focused on how to be smart about drugs and alcohol would make more sense with teenagers. That way we could have peace in mind knowing that if our young people start using drugs and alcohol, they know the dangers and how to use them safely. In addition to the more technical and general issues related to drunk driving and drug and alcohol use, there is a broader and more personal view of these problems. Almost every day, all over the world, we hear about drunk driving deaths, and as bad as it is, we simply dismiss it as another number in a huge pool of other drunk driving deaths..