BY MIKE CETERA
Why do kids drink?
A dumb question, yes? Yet, if parents -- and communities -- knew the real answer, they might be able to do something constructive to solve this nation's largest drug problem. I imagine many parents who attended the forums in Aurora and Oswego on Wednesday came to learn why kids drink; others perhaps came to find out if there is a way to stop them.
A study published in late 2007 sought to find the answers to these questions. The results, published in the journal Prevention Research, found that high school seniors drink to experiment, to relax -- and to get away from their problems -- by and large similar reasons why adults drink.
"Our study found that for the graduating class of 2004, students who had multiple reasons to drink, including reasons related to coping, were also more likely to begin drinking at an earlier age, more likely to be drunk in the past year and more likely to drink before 4:00 pm, compared to students who drank to experiment with alcohol, to experience the thrill of drinking or just to relax," according to Donna Coffman, Ph.D., of Penn State.
"It is important to know why high school seniors drink so parents, teachers and high school counselors can pay special attention to the needs of the small but high-risk group of seniors who offer multiple reasons for drinking and who also have anger or frustration issues. Research shows that drinking patterns established during adolescence are likely to continue through adulthood," according to Coffman.More than three-quarters of high school seniors have already experimented with alcohol, so it is too late to tell them 'not to drink,' or ask them to wait until they are of legal age. Kids who drink to help them deal with anger or frustration issues are not likely to benefit from a prevention program developed for kids who are just experimenting with alcohol, Coffman said.
Although they were unaffiliated, the two forums fall into a larger effort to educate parents.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services lists four goals for these town meetings:
* To raise community awareness about underage drinking and its risks.
* To encourage community involvement.
* To encourage community members to work together.
* To generate media interest.
Did these forums achieve these goals? Are these even the right goals to have? What should happen next?
Hi im Dave again id like to say i dont think we accomplished anything at the meeting i personally felt like i was cut of early but i do tend to rant so thats not a problem but what i wanted to get out at the meeting is that your not going to stop your kids from drinking unless you do another prohibition but look how well that worked. In my opinion the best thing you can do is educate your kids to make the best decions when they do drink and or use drugs. What i mean is tell them "hey if you ever need to be picked up from anything you can call me" that what my parents have said to me and it shows me that yea they dont approve of it but they are letting me live my life but also showing that they truly do care. I heard a lot of people talking about o lets narc or tell on our kids and get kids to do that too. No thats a useless tactic because all it brings is more distrust into our wolrd then there already is, ive seen and known people who snitch "anonomusly" and they've gotten the crap kicked outta them, the schools and police from what ive seen dont do much to help those kids after they do tell on others. But thats just my opinon again and along with that by telling on your kids you destroy the most sacred of things which is the family, ive been taught that you can always rely on family to help you out but if my familys just gonna get me put in a jail cell then id rather be dead cuz if you can't trust family then who the hell can you trust? I know im young and dumb and dont much understand about the "real" world but as a teen ive seen the stuff going on that you people dont see and you wanna know why kids drink, its to get messed up theres no o i feel bad about my friends dying so im gonna have a drink to calm my nerves its bull and if they really were a friend they would have stopped drinking the day they died. That big remeberance thing at the high school yea i didnt go to that but after there was a party and kids were drinking an im gonna go ahead and assume driving home i dont cuz i left early because i was so disgusted by the way people act. So all in all i guess im sayin is just at least think about what im saying before you dismiss me as some anti-american hippy.
Peace
David J
These neighborhood meetings are feel-good opportunities for parents & dog & pony shows for politicians. First off, acknowledge that in these areas, there is precious little for teens to do. You allocate all your resources for the little tykes and ignore the teens. Accept the fact that you reap what you sow. Give them nothing to do but drink, smoke up, steal supplies for meth, and that is what a lot of them will do. Put the money into activities that teens actually like to do -- other than their high school sports.
Also, disagree with Dave above. I find it disgusting that my teen can be in the military, turned into a killing machine but cannot share a beer at a restaurant with me. It is ridiculous that my kids can sign their lives away on student loans yet cannot enjoy a glass of wine. This goes directly back to the religious influence of this country. All common sense is lost.
Lastly, european countries have younger drinking ages & regularly imbibe at the family table at dinner. In this country we made liquor taboo, instead of teaching limits. You always want what you cannot have, eh? My child returned from Paris & reported that the only idiot drunks were the Americans! Binge drinking thousands of miles away from Mom & Dad's eyes. If we would get a comfortability with alcohol, not set it up as the precious illegal prize, and actually teach kids their limits I think we would be the better for it.
Hi Kathy im glad at least someone is reading these things it show that you at least care. Just out of curiosity i was wondering what you disagreed with me about? But i do agree with you on a couple of things such as kids being able to give their life but they are not allowed to enjoy an alcholic beverage till their 21, and the fact that if parents did teach thier kids to have some form of common sense when it comes to drinking there would be a lot less "controversy" with the topic of "underage" drinking. So thank you for at least bothering with these forums an i truly do hope all goes well with you and your children.
Peace
David Jaeger
Boy Kathy, you sure are pointing fingers everywhere but at the root of the problem. Spend your own money entertaining and fostering the development of your own kids. You shouldn't be looking to the community and government to act as parents. Apparently it wouldn't be good enough and you'd criticize the effort anyway. You seem to be really bent out of shape that you kids can't legally drink alcohol with you. Is this the big priority in your life? What is the rush? Should life in America just be one big free-for-all? Sex, drugs, violence -- everyone use your own discretion. Yeah, right! Your argument is lame - let's just let everyone do what they want, when they want, however much they want.......and when the tragedy hits your family, who are you going to blame? Probably anyone and everyone but yourself. There is nothing wrong with rules and guidelines. A line has to be drawn somewhere even if it means stepping on a few of the "good kids" toes. Good kids wouldn't be worrying about when they can get their next drink.