Alcohol and Teens

Think underage drinking doesn’t affect a teen’s brain? Think again.

Alcohol and Judgment

IT’S A FACT. New research shows alcohol affects a teenager’s developing brain differently than an adult’s. Memory, learning and impulse control can be impaired seriously. The risk of addiction goes up dramatically.

NEW RESEARCH SHOWS that alcohol affects a developing teen brain differently from an adult brain. “The brain goes through dynamic changes during adolescence, and alcohol can seriously damage long and short-term growth processes” (American Medical Association, 2003). Alcohol use may impair memory, learning, decision-making and impulse control; and it greatly increases the risk of addiction. In addition, alcohol use can cause young people to develop social problems, have poor judgment, get into trouble, do poorly in school and experience failure in achieving lifelong goals.

To compound this problem, research shows that parents generally underestimate the extent of teen drinking and its negative consequences. Thirty-one percent of youths who said they had been drunk in the past year were said by their parents to be non-drinkers. Others may view underage drinking as inevitable, but it isn’t. To be alcohol-free, a teen needs the active involvement and help of a parent. All children need help from their parents to guide them through their teenage years. Staying bonded to parents is critical to the process of teenagers emerging from adolescence healthy, safe and alcohol-free.

Talk to your kids about the dangers of alcohol and set clear about no alcohol use. Visit www.drugfree.org/parent for more information and the proven skills to prevent underage drinking.