Letter: It's a good time to talk about teen drinking

By: Pamela J. Story | Morganton News Herald
Published: April 07, 2009

Anyone with a child should educate him- or herself regarding the signs of alcohol use and abuse. No age group is immune to the ravages of alcoholism. The Burke Council on Alcoholism & Chemical Dependency Inc. has provided education, counseling, intervention and other information in this community for 43 years. We have counselors available in the schools and office to answer any questions you may have.
Alcohol is the drug most frequently used by high school seniors and its use is increasing. Underage drinking is a factor in nearly half of all teen automobile crashes and contributes to youth suicides, homicides, drownings and fatal injuries. Excessive use of alcohol is linked to as many as two-thirds of all sexual assaults and date rapes of teens and college students and is a major factor in unprotected sex among youth, increasing their risk of contracting HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases. Alcohol use releases aggression, lowers inhibitions, impairs judgment and is unpredictable.
Sadly, high school students lack essential knowledge about alcohol and its effects. Nationwide, an estimated 5.6 million junior and senior high school students are unsure of the legal age to purchase alcohol; a third do not understand the intoxicating effects of alcohol; and more than 2.6 million do not know a person can die from an alcohol overdose.
Here are facts on underage drinking from the National Council on Alcohol and Drug Dependence:
n First use of alcohol typically begins around age 13.
n Among high school students who reported riding with a driver who had been drinking, 80 percent were frequent drinkers and only 14 percent never drank.
n Due to heavy drinking or binge drinking (5 or more drinks per occasion), nearly one out of every five teenagers (16 percent) has experienced blackouts, after which they could not remember what happened the previous evening.
n Eight young people a day die in alcohol-related crashes.
n More than 67 percent of young people who start drinking before 15 will try an illicit drug. Children who drink are 7.5 times more likely to use any illicit drug, more than 22 times more likely to use marijuana and 50 times more likely to use cocaine than children who never drank.
n Of the estimated 5.4 million junior and senior high school students who have ever consumed five or more drinks in a row, 39 percent say they drink alone; 58 percent drink when they are upset; 30 percent drink when they are bored; and 37 percent drink to feel high.
n Alcohol kills more teenagers than all other drugs combined. It is a factor in the three leading causes of death among 15-24 year olds – accidents, homicides and suicide.
n Over 30,000 students each year need emergency health care for alcohol overdoses.
Education is crucial. Teenagers whose parents talk to them regularly about the dangers of alcohol (including other drugs) are 42 percent less likely to drink or use other drugs than those whose parents don't, yet only one in four teens report having these conversations.
It is time to have these conversations. Our kids are drinking and they are driving. Our kids are binge drinking, playing drinking games, passing out, blacking out and risking more than just getting caught. They are risking addiction, or worse, death.
Let's stop the underage drinking. Do not let an opportunity to talk with your child about alcohol pass by.
April is Alcohol Awareness Month. It's an opportunity to bring up the subject and have a very important conversation with your child – a conversation that just might be the one that saves his or her life.