What parents need to know about alcohol, its impact and how to talk to a loved one about it.
NEWSLETTER
Resources to Help You Help Your Loved One
Practical, research-backed information straight to your inbox every month.
📅 April is Alcohol Awareness Month and we'll be sharing helpful information and resources all month long. Whether your child has not yet tried alcohol, has begun to drink or drinks regularly, the Partnership is here to help.
*NEW VIDEO* Fact Check: Alcohol
Delay, delay, delay. That's a mantra that recovery advocate and mother Carleah Summers wants parents to use when it comes to alcohol use and their kids.
The brain undergoes massive changes during the teenage years particularly in the areas of decision making and impulse control, and alcohol use can impact healthy brain development. In addition, teens who start drinking before the age of 15 are five times more likely to develop alcohol use disorder than if they start after turning 21.
Watch Now
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Top Reasons Teens Try Alcohol
1. Everyone’s Doing It – Or So They Think – Teens pay attention when their parents and peers drink alcohol. In their minds, alcohol use is part of growing up. In reality, most teens have never tried alcohol.
2. The Media They View – When teens see people drinking alcohol in movies, popular shows and on social media – often without consequences – it appeals to them.
3. A Way to Cope – When teens feel angry, sad, hopeless, anxious or frustrated, they may turn to alcohol for relief or as a distraction instead of coping in a healthier way.
4. Boredom/Curiosity – Teens who are not engaged in activities that are challenging, exciting, or involve healthy risk-taking may use alcohol for fun or excitement.
5. To Feel Independent – Some teens use alcohol to prove their maturity and independence.
6. How It Makes Them Feel – Alcohol works quickly and its initial effects can feel really good.
7. To Feel More Relaxed – Many teens use alcohol in social situations believing it will make them feel more comfortable and confident.
8. Misinformation – Kids are getting their information about alcohol use from unreliable sources – like friends or social media rather than parents or schools.
Be the source young people in your life can trust.
Visit our Alcohol Resource Center
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Conversation Starters: Questions Parents Can Ask Their Teens
These questions can help you have honest and effective conversations with your child. Be ready to listen and focus on their health and safety rather than threats and punishments.
- What are your thoughts about seeing pictures of friends or celebrities drinking on social media?
- Why do you think movies and social media posts seem to show the fun side of drinking, but rarely the downside?
- What do you think you might you say if someone offered you a drink?
- Practicing responses such as, “No thanks, I’m not interested,” said with direct eye contact and positive body language can help your child be prepared.
- If you know your child drinks, it helps to understand why, so you can address your child’s needs in a healthier way. Use questions like:
- What do you enjoy about drinking?
- How does drinking make you feel?
Check out our Alcohol Guide ([link removed] ) to be better prepared to talk to a loved one about drinking.
Upcoming Event!
You're invited to join the Partnership's Linda Richter, Vice President of Prevention Research and Analysis, at the webinar Proactive Parenting: Preventive Measures to Protect Children from Substance Use
When: Monday, April 24, 2023
Time: 9:00pm-10:30pm EDT
Where: ZOOM
How: Sign up here ([link removed] )
For FREE registration use Promo Code: PTEA18
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