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A Parent’s Guide to Keeping Kids Alcohol Free By Shepherd Smith, 4/1/2004 Teens and alcohol – too many adults dismiss it as simply a rite of passage. It is. Unfortunately, it’s a passage to arrested brain development, dangerous sexual activity, other drugs, and deadly car crashes. Far too many parents try not to see, or wink at, their children’s alcohol use. Others even host teen parties where alcohol is served at their house so they can “supervise” the drinking. And there are those parents who try to help their children to drink responsibly not realizing teen drinking is an oxymoron. Among the student body of some very high-priced private schools in my area, some parents have gone so far as hiring a limo to take their children to and from parties so they can drink “safely.” You’ve probably noticed a number of articles in April on alcohol. That’s because April is Alcohol Awareness Month. It’s a good time for parents to be aware just how much they are risking if they allow their teenage sons or daughters to drink. And to understand how much they really can do to protect their children. But every month should be Alcohol Awareness Month. There is some encouraging news. The overall substance abuse among 8 th, 10 th, and 12 th graders nationwide has either remained stable or decreased slightly for the sixth year in a row. However, there is still cause for alarm. There are millions of kids who begin drinking before the age of 15. Those who do are twice as likely to engage in alcohol abuse and four times more likely to develop alcohol dependence than those who began drinking after age 21. In addition, approximately 31 percent of high school students admit binge drinking at least once a month – that’s approximately five million kids who drink five or more drinks in a few hours. Again, we’re talking about high school kids. Like the kids who begin drinking at a young age, adolescent binge drinkers risk doing more to their health than waking up with a nasty hangover. Up until the age of 20, a person’s brain is still developing. Alcohol has been shown to disrupt this developmental process, and the damage can be long-term and irreversible. Teens who drink heavily have a 10% smaller hippocampus, the portion of the brain that controls memory and learning. Drinking can damage the frontal lobe of an adolescent’s brain – this part of the brain changes the most during adolescence and helps control reasoning, speech, movement, emotions and problem-solving. Even moderate alcohol use has been shown to affect memory and vocabulary usage. And again, the earlier this occurs, the more damaging the consequences. Binge drinkers are 21 times more likely to get injured, drive while drunk, get into trouble with the police, engage in sex, and fall behind in school. Even moderate alcohol consumption increases the likelihood that a child will become involved at early ages in one or more other dangerous behaviors such as drugs, sex, tobacco, and violence. What parents of teens often fail to realize is how much influence they have over whether their children choose to drink. Among high-achieving high school students who report their parents forbid them to drink, more than two-thirds do not drink. Adolescents who have parents who are “hands on” – monitoring their children’s activities – are less than half as likely to drink as are all teenagers. And teens that have “hands off” parents are four times more likely than kids of “hands on” parents to drink alcohol. Research also shows that teens benefit when they feel connected to their parents. Teens with parents who have conversations with them, eat dinner with them, express their love, and set clear expectations are less likely to abuse alcohol. Teens and alcohol – it’s a turning point for parents. You can choose to ignore it, or even do something ludicrous like host a teen drinking party, and set your child on a course of dangerous and damaging behavior. Or you can take the time to say, “I love you,” “Where are you going?” “Be home in time for dinner,” and “Don’t drink – at all!” Your child will end up the better for it, forever. There are parents who never said these things, and sadly, many of them only have memories of their children now. Shepherd Smith is founder and president of the Institute for Youth Development, a non-partisan, non-profit organization that promotes a consistent, comprehensive risk-avoidance message to youth for the leading harmful risk-behaviors: alcohol, drugs, sex, tobacco and violence. For more information, write to IYD at P.O. Box 16560, Washington, D.C., 20041 or visit www.youthdevelopment.org
4/25/03
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