Key Concepts

College Kids @ Home

 A friend of mine called recently to mention a topic.  Her neighborhood is full of college kids returning for the summer.  She says that lots of them are drinking and doing it in the open with their parents.  

"They're saying, 'look we'll drink in the basement or we'll drink somewhere else!'" she tells me.  "Why," she asks "do they feel like they have to drink?"

Good question!  Some college kids drink when they hangout.  They do this, kids suggest, because it's what they do at college.  That's not the whole story.  Many college-aged kids don't drink, or don't drink often.  Many kids do it because they don't know what else to do.

There is also the risk of self-medication. It is not uncommon for teens and young adults to use alcohol to address depression, anxiety, and other mental health issues they face. (More on this in a couple of weeks.)

At the very least, it seems to me, that parents may want to talk to their college students about the topic.  Do parents have concerns about their kids' still developing brains?  Do parents want to make sure that drinking is not the default activity when these developing adults are bored?  Talk to kids about their perceived "limits" when they drink. College students often underestimate how much they drink, and how much is too much. Susie Bruce at the University of Virginia teaches parents of incoming freshmen that the developing young adult responds differently to alcohol than older adults in the following ways:   

 

 

• More sensitive to memory impairment
•  Easier to drink to brain impairment without realizing it.
• Faster development of tolerance
• Less sensitive to sedative effects 
• May be more vulnerable to long-term damage *

One last thing.  Parents should always keep in mind that they are still legally at risk if their kids' friends are drinking underage as guests in their homes.

 

*Source: H Scott Swartzwelder, Clinical Professor of Psychiatry and Psychology and Neuroscience, Duke University.  Research supported by NIAAA and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs

 

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/07/13/AR2010071304399.html?hpid=sec-education 

The European Way

Many of us would like to use the "European Model" for teaching our children to use alcohol safely and wisely.  We have an image (or overseas experience) that suggests that the Europeans, who allow teens to drink at younger ages, sit and enjoy a leisurely glass of wine while gathering with family or friends.  Unfortunately, the reality is very different.

In 2003 the Department of Justice published a comparison of youth drinking rates in Europe as compared to the US.  Specifically looking at the incidence of heavy drinking, US teens come in second to last in terms of prevalence of heavy drinking.  Only Turkey has lower rates of heavy drinking, and Turkey is a Muslim country (Islam bans drinking alcohol.)

Last year Germany  began considering raising their drinking age.  Now France is considering curbing binge drinking by raising their drinking age from 16 to 18.  You can hear a report on the BBC News show The World.

The Science is clear.  Teenaged drinking is dangerous, and introducing teens to drinking is more likely to lead to abuse.  Click on the links and see that Europe is starting to pay attention, too.