Guess what—advertising works.

According to researchers from Boston and Johns Hopkins universities, underage drinkers were three times more likely to consume alcohol that was advertised on television shows they watched.

These findings aren’t exactly shocking. Companies advertise products hoping people will then buy and consume those very products. Still, the fact that ads impact people who aren’t supposed to be using these products is troubling to many—particularly given that this recent study follows another that suggested underage readers also are swayed by magazine alcohol ads.

“Taken together, these studies strengthen the case for a relationship between brand-specific alcohol advertising among underage youth and brand-specific consumption,” says Craig Ross, who authored the study and is president of Virtual Media Resources in Natick, Massachusetts. “As alcohol continues to devastate so many young lives, youth exposure to alcohol advertising should be reduced.” (Futurity)

Paul Asay has written for The Washington Post, Christianity Today, Beliefnet.com and The (Colorado Springs) Gazette. He writes about culture for PluggedIn and wrote the Batman book God on the Streets of Gotham (Tyndale). He recently collaborated with Jim Daly, president of Focus on the Family, on his book The Good Dad. He lives in Colorado Springs with wife, Wendy, and his two children. Follow him on Twitter.