Starting young

Study advises parents to begin educating kids as young as 9 about alcohol risks

Arkansas Democrat-Gazette alcohol illustration.
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette alcohol illustration.

Parents waiting for the teen years to talk to their children about the dangers of alcohol may want to rethink their timeline.

A recent study by the American Academy of Pediatrics suggests that parents have the conversation with children as young as 9.

The study, which focused on the problem of binge drinking in children and adolescents, noted that because children start to "think positively about alcohol between ages 9 and 13 years," parents should start bringing up the dangers of alcohol with kids sooner rather than later.

"As with any high-risk behavior, prevention plays a more important role than later intervention," according to the study, written by Drs. Lorena Siqueira and Vincent C. Smith.

While talking about binge drinking, driving while intoxicated and alcohol poisoning with a third-grader may seem premature to some parents, Dr. Nicholas Long, professor of pediatrics, director of pediatric psychology at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences and director for the Center for Effective Parenting at Arkansas Children's Hospital, says that about age 9 is the right time to start those discussions.

"It's important to start talking to kids about alcohol, sex and other high-risk behaviors before they start engaging in them," Long says. "It depends on the maturity of the child, but by third or fourth grade, children are going to start being exposed to alcohol."

Long says that the exposure often comes from media or their peers. And when kids are getting their information on alcohol from other kids, the facts are often jumbled.

"There are all kinds of misconceptions that they'll hear from other kids," Long says. "They need to know that all alcohol is a problem, including hard lemonade and sweet drinks."

To clear up those misconceptions, Long recommends parents avoid one long lecture on alcohol and aim for short, teachable moments instead. Parents can use something a child has seen on TV or in the news as a way to start talking about the dangers of alcohol.

"It doesn't have to be a really long discussion ... a young child's attention span is pretty short," Long says. "They'll turn their parents off really quickly. Short messages over time are better."

Phillip Crutchfield of North Little Rock found it easy to start the conversation about alcohol with his now teenage sons thanks to nightly family dinners. He started the conversations when his boys where 7 or 8 years old.

"We had extended family who drink, and we wanted them to understand why they behaved a certain way with alcohol," Crutchfield says. "We wanted to explain a behavioral change in someone who was drunk or inebriated that might have frightened them and to be proactive to answer any questions they might have."

Crutchfield, a former law enforcement officer who now serves as pastor at Christ's Church Assembly in North Little Rock, says that just talking to kids about their lives is some of the most important work a parent can do.

"I may sound completely corny, but we sit around the table and we talk to our sons .... I know some parents are out there working two jobs, but if you just take a little time, it makes a big difference," he says.

The influence of parents on their children's attitude toward alcohol goes beyond talk. Long says kids are also influenced by watching the way their parents consume alcohol.

"It's important that children don't see their parents binge drinking, or using alcohol to cope with stress," Long says. "Those messages need to start long before the kids are 9 years old."

In addition to guidance from parents, schools can also play a part in influencing a child's perception of alcohol.

At Charleston Public Schools in Franklin County, middle-school counselor Tahnee Bowen often addresses drug and alcohol use with her students, especially during the Red Ribbon Campaign on Oct. 23-31. The nationwide event for drug and alcohol education and awareness is sponsored by the National Family Partnership (redribbon.org).

"We talk about the fact that [alcohol] is not illegal, but it is if you're under 21," she says. "Some kids will ask, 'Is it wrong to drink alcohol?' and what they're trying to figure out is if their parents are doing something wrong. So we have to be careful to focus on why it's illegal for them and some of the things that could happen if they tried alcohol."

Bowen says many parents hold off on talking about alcohol with their children because they don't believe they have been exposed to it before middle school or high school. But the Academy of Pediatrics study found that 21 percent of youth admit to having more than a sip of alcohol before they reach 13 years old.

For parents who are hesitant to talk to their young children about alcohol, Bowen explains it in terms of another easily accessible drug in the home: medicine.

"Would you tell your 9-year-old not to take medicine that someone gives you?" she says. "Alcohol is the same way. It's easy to reach in cabinets or refrigerators. And they see it everywhere. The biggest ad on the Super Bowl is usually from Budweiser. You just can't underestimate how quickly these kids are exposed to these ideas."

Family on 09/23/2015

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