Binge drinking and alcohol consumption in general is higher among adolescents who own alcohol-related t-shirts, hats and other marketing items, according to researchers at Dartmouth College.

HealthDay News reported March 2 that a survey of about 6,500 youths ages 10 to 14 found that up to one in five said they wore or owned alcohol-branded merchandise, such as clothing (64 percent), hats (24 percent) and items such as jewelry, shot glasses, and posters.

Most of the items promoted beer, and 45 percent of these promoted Anheuser-Busch’s Budweiser brand. Three-quarters of the youths said that friends or family had bought the merchandise, but one in four said they had purchased the items themselves.

Lead researcher Auden C. McClure said the researchers found that owning such merchandise was an accurate risk predictor for underage alcohol use and binge drinking, as well as susceptibility for drinking initiation. “You can’t say any longer that these items are just a marker of kids who drink,” she said, adding: “It really underscores the importance for policies that restrict the scope of this marketing, so that these products aren’t reaching teens and influencing drinking behaviors.”

David H. Jernigan, an associate professor at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, said the findings show that industry self-regulation doesn’t work. “There should be pressure put on these [alcohol] companies,” Jernigan said. “If you are producing stuff, so much of which ends up in the bodies of an audience that’s not the target of your marketing, I hope you would think twice.”

Carol Clark, a spokesperson for Anheuser-Busch, said the company directs its marketing at adults only. “Our promotional clothing and merchandise are intended for adults, come in adult sizes and are placed in adult sections of stores,” she said. “When it comes to preventing underage drinking, we should focus on restricting youth access, not censoring advertising and marketing.”

The study appeared in the March 2009 issue of the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine.