During this festive season of holiday parties, luncheons and dinners, some adult may over-indulge. Whether it is food or drinking, going over your usually limit with treats is common when celebrating.
However, when it comes to your teens, you need to be an example to them. Holiday cheer can be fun without the high intake of alcohol.
Alcohol Facts:
(Booze)
What is It?
Alcohol is created when grains, fruits, or vegetables are fermented, a process that uses yeast or bacteria to change the sugars in the food into alcohol. Alcohol has different forms and can be used as a cleaner or antiseptic; however the kind of alcohol that people drink is ethanol, which is a sedative. When alcohol is consumed, it's absorbed into a person's bloodstream. From there, it affects the central nervous system (the brain and spinal cord), which controls virtually all body functions. Alcohol actually blocks some of the messages trying to get to the brain. This alters a person's perceptions, emotions, movement, vision, and hearing.
The younger you are when you start drinking, the greater your chance of becoming addicted to alcohol at some point in your life. More than 4 in 10 people who begin drinking before age 15 eventually become alcoholics.
Take a moment to learn more about Above The Influence, and share it with your teens. Because when it comes to our kids, whether they are young adults or tweens - the earlier you start the discussion of the dangers of substance abuse, the more likely your child will not use drugs.
The Office of National Drug Control Policy's Above the Influence Campaign is a resource for teens, parents, and teachers. With drug facts, real teen stories, and interactive content, the website can help concerned adults work with teens to help them stay above the influence of their peers who use drugs. http://www.abovetheinfluence.com.
Take the time to do your research - visit Parents' Universal Resource Experts, Inc. This organization helps educate and guide parents to find safe and quality schools and programs and first opened in Broward County. They are a long standing member of the Better Business Bureau now in North Florida also.
For those over 18 years old, Broward County offers Broward Addiction Recovery Center.
Be an educated parent, you will have safer and healthier teens!
Comments
Thank you Sue for taking the time to address teen substance abuse during such a key time as the holidays and to lead with the message that a well-informed parent is a better parent as the communicate with their kids.
The Partnership at Drugfree.org works in tandem with the ONDCP to create the Above The Influence campaign, and as such I did want to offer the tools, support and resources available at www.drugfree.org to parents. At www.drugfree.org, we work to provide parents with the content and program they need for their kids, from prevention to intervention to treatment.
In addition, if you are a parent grappling with a teen's drug or alcohol problem during the holidays, please visit our newest parent resource, Time To Get Help, at www.drugfree.org/timetogethelp. Here you will find an entire online support community of parents who are in the boat with you.
Thanks and Peaceful Holidays to All!
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