Keeping Your Child Safe From Alcohol

Published 10/2006 - Houston Family Magazine 

• 1 in 10 female college freshmen report consuming more than 8 drinks in one sitting within a two week period
• 1 in 5 male college freshmen report consuming more than 10 drinks in one sitting within a two week period
• 51% of undergrads who drink report blacking out at some point
• 45% of adult alcoholics began drinking before age 16

 

The younger a person becomes alcohol dependent, the more likely s/he will stay addicted and experience symptoms.  Symptoms such as withdrawal syndrome, craving, mood and personality changes and so forth reinforce the addiction.

 

About one-half of adults with alcoholism could have been diagnosed before age 21 and two-thirds by age 25.  The consequences of youth drinking are severe and include brain damage.

 

Adolescents who drink have difficulty remembering verbal and non-verbal information.  Brain imaging studies of young adults who drank heavily as teens show significantly decreased activity in the frontal and parietal lobes.  These brain regions are critical areas for personality expression and executive thinking.  The frontal lobe is involved in decision-making, attention, impulse control and personality.  The parietal lobes process sensory information, spatial orientation and language.

 

Alcohol also damages the hippocampus.  New memory cannot be formed without a normally functioning hippocampus and alcohol disrupts activity in this area.

 

Adolescents and young adults are much more vulnerable to alcohol effects.  The brain is not fully developed until the mid-20’s which makes it uniquely sensitive to toxins and the negative effects of substances.  The younger children are when they drink, the greater the risks.

 

Many parents mistakenly consider alcohol benign or not as dangerous as other substances.  This contrasts with youth perception.  Greater than one-half of teenagers report alcohol and drugs are their greatest concern.  Even when parents become concerned about their teen’s drinking most times they have no idea how extensive the problem really is and how often their teen drinks without being caught.  A recent national survey showed that only one in five parents believe alcohol or marijuana is available at parties their children attend.  On the other hand, one-half of teenagers say drugs and alcohol are readily available.

 

Vigilence and communication are vital to lessening the chance that your child will be among the 1 in 10 eighth graders who binge drink.

 

• Keep tabs on alcohol in your home. Monitor parties and check in once in a while.  Teenagers report that they usually drink while adults are present in the home.
• Talk to other parents.  Agree on rules as a group so that they remain consistent between homes.  No one parent stands out as a “bad guy” and parents can monitor the less well supervised homes.
• Put safety first.  Know your teen’s plans, check up on them and make it about their safety.
• Be clear and concise.  Have clear family rules such as no alcohol before age 21 and no riding in a car with anyone who has been drinking.
• Consequences should be painful.  Consequences should be quick and consistent but not so harsh that they shut down communication.
• Nuture healthy relationships.  Know your teen’s friends.  Peer pressure is significant and kids are more likely to drink if their friends do.  Facilitate gatherings at your home so you can supervise teen behavior.
• Talk about your family.  If you have alcoholics in your history, talk to your children about the problem.  Let them know why they may be more vulnerable to substance abuse.
• Know the college policies about drinking.  Schools may not notify parents when kids are in trouble.  This is especially true when students are over 18 and are considered adults with rights to confidentiality.
• Discuss drinking games and hazing.  Help your children develop the skills to resist peer pressure and excessive rapid consumption in group settings.  Social pressure intensifies as kids move into teenage years.
• Discuss drinking behavior.  By young adulthood almost all kids will have tried alcohol or will be consuming it occasionally.  Talk about safe use and how to know when to stop.

 

 

Intervene immediately if you suspect your child has a substance abuse problem.  Warning signs of personality change, increased secretive behavior, emotional change, isolation or declining performance in school and sports warrant an urgent appointment with a health care provider. 

 

Dr. Routh is the director of Brainwaves Neuroimaging Clinic and author of Healing Anxiety and Depression.  Brainwaves offers neuropsychiatric evaluations, counseling services and brain imaging. 

 

Sources: Alcohol Research and Health, 2003; Alcoholism, Clinical and Experimental Research, 2006; Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, 2006; Pediatrics, 2006; Recent Developments in Alcoholism, 2005; National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse, 2006; National Institutes of Health.