Will I have much influence on my teen?
“What parents may not realize is that children say that parental disapproval of underage drinking is the key reason they have chosen not to drink.”
-Charles Curie, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
- Your children care about your opinions more than you think. Kids spend a lot of time with friends, television, music and magazines. But they are also tuned in to you. Your words and actions impact them in many ways every day.
- Research shows that children are less likely to drink when their parents are involved in their lives, and when they and their parents report feeling close to each other.
- As a parent, you can guide your children’s behavior by not drinking at all, or drinking moderately. For adults who choose to drink, moderation is defined as no more than one drink per day for women and no more than two drinks per day for men.
- Your older children also influence their younger brothers and sisters. If an older sibling drinks alcohol, this can encourage younger siblings to drink, especially if they are the same gender.
- When a teen views drinking as harmful to her health, something her parents disapprove of, or against her moral values, her beliefs are far more powerful in avoiding smoking, drinking, and drug use than legal restrictions on buying cigarettes, alcohol or other drugs.
