Being honest with your children about your own past drug use is not suggested, according to a public release from EurekAlert on Feb. 22. If you smoked marijuana in your past, experts advise to keep it in your past.
The new research from the University of Illinois found children were more likely to have 'anti-drug use' attitudes when parents did not tell them about their own previous drug use.
The researchers gathered survey information from students in the sixth through the eighth grades who reported conversations with their parents about alcohol, cigarettes and marijuana.
The findings suggest even when parents converse with their children about the negative outcomes regarding their own personal drug use, the children were not positively influenced. The children apparently did not receive the anti-drug message but focused on the previous drug use of the parents.
Young children do not have the emotional maturity to decipher certain verbal messages so they may imitate behaviors instead, even the past behaviors of parents. Albeit marijuana is currently more socially acceptable, it is still illegal in many states and children may copy the 'youthful' actions of their parents.
These findings could suggest many children may overlook present anti-drug messages given by well-meaning parents as they focus on the past drug use behaviors.
The study's findings can be found in the journal Human Communication Research.
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Parents talking about their own drug use to children could be detrimental
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