What’s the harm? Former teenage drinker urges parents to talk to teenagers about alcohol
EVERY parent and carer wants to do the right thing for their children’s health. But providing them with alcohol can put a toxic influence into the mix.
With the summer holidays in full swing, parents and carers are being encouraged to think twice about giving children alcohol to protect them from risk and help to keep local communities safe.
Balance relaunches its What’s the Harm? campaign today aimed at giving families need to know information about young people and alcohol. Information for parents and carers and a FREE guide about talking to children about alcohol is available at Whatstheharm.co.uk
Evidence is clear that introducing children to alcohol – especially before 15 – can:
- Harm developing bodies and brains
- Worsen feelings of low mood or depression
- Put their safety at risk – a higher risk of accidents and risk-taking behaviour
- Open the door to more regular teenage drinking and heavier drinking as adults
Alcohol is the biggest risk factor for death, ill-health, and disability among 15-49 year-olds in the UK, as well as a group one carcinogen and a direct cause of seven types of cancer, including bowel and breast cancer.
Chief Medical Officer Guidance is that no alcohol under 18 is the healthiest and safest option but if children do drink, it should not be before the age of 15. If children aged 15-17 do drink it should only be in a supervised environment, and no more than once a week.
Surveys show that parents and carers are the main source of alcohol for young people, with almost 70% of alcohol consumed by under-18s coming from the family home. However, with more young people choosing not to drink for better physical and mental health, it is important that parents and carers do not assume that drinking alcohol is a rite of passage for their children.
Susan Taylor, Head of Alcohol Policy for Balance, says: “Every parent and carer wants the best for their child. But alcohol use during teenage years can harm their physical health and mental health. In the past a lot of parents have seen giving their children a drink as a way to help keep them safe, but the risk is that it can give the green light to more regular and heavier drinking.
“The alcohol industry has long promoted alcohol as a normal part of a happy, successful life but in reality, too many adults and children are ending up in hospital, in A&E or with real problems in their lives because of alcohol.
“Hospitals are now seeing people at a younger age with alcohol-related conditions such as liver disease. Alcohol intake can catch up with people much sooner than we sometimes think.
“The longer we can delay young people from drinking alcohol, the better. The younger they drink, the more likely they will develop a taste for it and encounter all the risks.”
Evie Jay, a mum from Newcastle who started drinking at the age of 14 says:
“For me things went on a downward spiral after I started drinking alcohol as a teenager – it had a massive impact on my mental health, which was in the gutter by the age of 15. I’d drink to escape difficult feelings, but instead I ended up in some risky situations, I remember drinking heavily until I would blackout. I struggled with my mental health and used alcohol to cope with the issues I was facing.
“As a parent, I wouldn’t want this for my daughter. When you’re a teenager you’re going through so many changes and emotions that alcohol can seem like a way to ‘cope’ but it can actually make you feel a lot worse.
“Growing up, alcohol was the only way adults in my family knew how to socialise – I think it’s important to show young people that you can have fun and spend time with family and friends without drinking alcohol.
“Having a conversation about alcohol with your children gives them the information they need to make smart choices – I plan to talk to my daughter about the impact alcohol had on my childhood and would urge parents to think about their own experiences and do the same.”
Kelly Mould, 40, from Washington, Tyne and Wear, started drinking as a teenager to mask insecurities. It gave her a false sense of confidence but beneath the surface, it was starting to destroy her body. By the time she realised the damage, she was on the brink of losing everything – including her liver. Kelly had developed fibrosis – early-stage liver scarring. The next stage was cirrhosis, a point of no return. If she didn’t quit alcohol, she would face end-stage liver disease, liver failure, or worse.
She said “My experience is very clear that if you start drinking as a child, it can be starting to affect your body and your liver before you hit 40. My advice is to think very carefully about introducing it to children.”
The law is clear that buying alcohol under 18 or selling it to children under 18 is illegal.
Supplying children with alcohol undermines this important age of sale laws which are there to protect both children and local communities.