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RSS FeedShould parents teach children how to drink alcohol responsibly or maintain a no-use policy at home?
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| At home | 53% | 623 votes | Total: 1172 votes | |
| No-use | 47% | 549 votes |
At home
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Add to FavoritesAs any experienced parent knows, forbid your child from doing something and that makes it all the more attractive. Forbidding alcohol without discussion can encourage your teen to want to find out what you are trying to hide from them. Teaching children and teens about the dangers and the pleasures of alcohol is responsible parenting. Every parent is entitled to raise their children how they see fit but ignoring the natural curiosity that occurs during the teen years can be damaging to your teens health and safety.
Many families come from cultures where it is acceptable to drink a glass of wine with dinner. When children are raised in an atmosphere where the adults normally do this, they have an idea of how alcohol can be used responsibly. A child who is raised in an alcoholic household is often threatened to not drink but are receiving a mixed message on alcohol use. The tendency for a child to develop a problem with alcohol who was raised in a home where alcohol was abused, is higher than in other homes.
Alcohol, even though it is legal to be used by adults, is a drug. Most people do not think of it that way but they should. Many people can be social drinkers without having any negative repercussions and others develop addictions. Teens who drink, often do so to excess and many tragic stories can be told of alcohol poisoning, car accidents and violence all due to alcohol abuse. Alcohol is legal for adults because it takes a responsible adult to understand how to drink responsibly.
Children and teens should be taught by their parents on what is responsible behavior when it comes to alcohol. Children and teens are taught in many school districts about alcohol and drugs. Whether a parent decides to allow their teen to use alcohol in their home or maintains a no-use policy, teaching how to drink responsibly is a necessity. If a parent maintains that they do not want their teen to drink until they reach the legal age, that is fine but a discussion should still be had.
If a parent teaches their teen to not have premarital sex, I am sure they are going to tell them why they feel that way. When a parent says 'no' with no explanation to why, it will make the teen more curious.
Remember what it was like to be a teen and what your parents views were on drinking. We want our teens to grow up safe and healthy. We need to do our jobs as parents and discuss adult issues like drinking alcohol with our teens. Although they will soon be adults, they have a lot to learn about being adults. It is a parents job to help guide them.
Learn more about this author, Priscilla Benfield.
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No-use
As the mother of three grown children and as a recovering alcoholic of 18 years, I have strong opinions about this topic. Underage drinking is illegal and as such, was prohibited from our house the same as other illegal activities. But "no-use" should never mean "no-communication".
M y extended family is like millions of others riddled with alcoholism. My own parents were great believers in "If you want to do it, then you should do it at home". It sure didn't help me understand responsible drinking! I ended up drinking right along with my parents.
When I stopped drinking my children were very young. But not too young to begin the conversation about alcohol and other drugs. The parental choice isn't either/or; no boundaries on drinking behavior or a complete shut down of the subject. We talked to our children about situations where they may face the choice of using with friends; we taught them strategies to get out of those situations and ways to get home if they did decide to drink. We had conversations about the genetic aspects of alcoholism and how their personal risk is greater than someone who doesn't have alcoholic parents. We talked about underage drinking as an illegal activity and what the consequences were of breaking this law. And finally, we made sure that our children knew they could call us at any time from any place if they needed a ride home because they had been drinking. Without anger or punishment. But there was going to be a big talk about it when they were hungover! :)
My children have all done their time of experimentation with drinking and other drugs. One drinks responsibly, one developed problems drinking but was able to stop drinking by 22 years old. They youngest never drinks but uses pot...so we'll see what happens there. But they still talk to us about the issue of drinking and drugs. I feel certain that my children know more about addiction and recovery than most people and in that knowledge, they are protected.
Learn more about this author, Jacki Putnam.
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