It is well known that the younger a child begins to drink alcohol, the higher risk they have of becoming an alcoholic in their adult years. Early drinking sets up a pattern to addictive drinking as adults. Youth reasoning behind drinking is merely to get drunk, not as a casual drink between friends, but for partying purposes. They do not have healthy boundaries set. It is up to parents to make sure there are strong boundaries set in order to raise their children into adults with healthy boundaries when it comes to drinking.
Alcoholism has no boundaries, no geographical boundaries, no economics status boundaries, and no age criteria as seen in this following clip from ITNNEWS and in the following newsprint from BBC News.
Although both the video clip and the news article is Britain based, the effects of alcohol is worldwide.
Parents who allow their children alcohol at home may be increasing the chances of future drinking problems, says England's chief medical officer.
Sir Liam Donaldson accused some parents of a "laissez-faire" approach and said letting children taste alcohol to ready them for adulthood was "misguided".
Evidence showed that this could lead to binge drinking in later life, he said.
New official guidance says under-15s should drink no alcohol, with under-18s drinking only under supervision.
Legally, parents and carers can give their children alcohol at home from the age of five onwards.
Middle-class obsession'
However, Sir Liam described the idea of a glass of watered-down wine for a child as a "middle-class obsession", and criticised the approach among some parents towards their children getting drunk.
He said: "Across England, 500,000 children between the ages of 11 to 15 years will have been drunk in the past four weeks.
"The science is clear - drinking, particularly at a young age, a lack of parental supervision, exposing children to drink-fuelled events and failing to engage with them as they grow up are the root causes from which our country's serious alcohol problem has developed."
He added: "The more [children] get a taste for it, the more likely they are to be heavy drinking adults or binge drinkers later in childhood."
He announced a major publicity campaign on the subject in England, which will get under way in January 2010.
Similar advice is expected in Scotland at around the same time. In Wales, a health spokesman said work was already under way to tackle drinking among young people.
The advice was welcomed by alcohol campaign groups, although Alcohol Concern said that the availability of alcohol at "pocket money prices" was a key factor in abuse and should be addressed by ministers.
Sir Liam said that he wanted to address the "ready availability" of cheap alcohol and called on supermarkets and corner shops to "take a stand".
He said that he would be able to "shout louder" about his suggestion for a 50p minimum price for alcohol - rejected by Prime Minister Gordon Brown - after he steps down next year.
Jeremy Todd, chief executive of the parenting charity Parentline Plus, praised the guidelines.
He said: "Parents can have a huge influence on their child's drinking choices.
Parental influence
"Rates of teenage drunkenness are higher amongst both the children of parents who drink to excess and the children of parents who abstain completely.
"Whilst parents have a greater influence on their children's drinking patterns early on, as they grow older their friends have a greater influence.
"It is therefore crucial for parents to talk to their children about alcohol and its effects."
Professor Ian Gilmore, president of the Royal College of Physicians and chair of the Alcohol Health Alliance, said: "We know that adults who drink sensibly tend to pass these habits on and that some families choose to introduce alcohol to their children younger than 15 in a supportive environment."
He stressed that not drinking alcohol at all remained the "healthiest option" for children.
Alison Rogers, chief executive of the British Liver Trust, said: "While Sir Liam's statement is very strong and gives clear clinical guidance, the issues of pocket-money pricing and easy availability of alcohol need to be addressed if it is to have any impact on the life-style choices we are making."
If you need help, are struggling with an addiction, or know of someone who is, please contact A Better Tomorrow Treatment Center today. We are here to help.
http://www.abttc.net/
Phone: 800.971.1586
Fax: 800.401.8464
24 Hour Addiction HelpLine
Tel. (800) 396-9389 (7 days 24 hours)
e-mail: info@24houraddictionhelp.com
http://www.24houraddictionhelp.org/
Feel free to follow us on Facebook and Twitter too!
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/ABTomorrow
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/ABTomorrow
My son told me about jello shots that were served at a party he attended. I think mixing alcohol this way is extremely dangerous with young people. I agree that some parents just don't get the fact that they are putting their children in danger by allowing them to consume alchol of any kind for any reason.
ReplyDeleteI was one of those parents who thought if you let them drink at home you could control it. Boy, was I wrong. My 19 year old is out drinking and partying 2 or 3 nights a week. It scares me and I don't know how to stop it now. I don't even know if I can. I've tried talking to him but I doubt he tuned in.
ReplyDeleteWe were always allowed to taste alcohol at home but were never given free reign to drink what we wanted. I think there is a distinction to be made there.
ReplyDeleteWhen you look at the statistics for underage drinkers it really boggles the mind. They're just kids and they are literally drinking away the best years of their lives. I know they don't believe it, but one day they will wake up and realize the truth of it. That's time that can never be recovered or relived. It's sad.
ReplyDeleteThis problem cost me my son. I turned a blind eye more than once when I knew he was drinking with his friends. A cloudy judgement call on a foggy night caused an accident that killed him and 3 of his friends at 19. I wish I could go back and stop it somehow but the chance is past forever. Don't let it happen again.
ReplyDelete