Lassiter PTSA Red 'e' Campaign

By Lassiter High School PTSA

The legal drinking age throughout the United States is 21, but according to the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse, almost 80 percent of high school students have tried alcohol.

When people drink alcohol, it's absorbed into their bloodstream. From there, it affects the central nervous system (the brain and spinal cord), which controls virtually all body functions. Because experts now know that the human brain is still developing during our teens, scientists are researching the effects drinking alcohol can have on the teen brain.

When teens take their first drink, they have no intentions of becoming alcohol abusers or alcoholics. Studies show that the younger you are when you start drinking, the greater your chance of becoming addicted to alcohol at some point in your life. More than 4 in 10 people who begin drinking before age 15 eventually become alcoholics. The science of addiction reminds us that genetic predisposition can lay dormant until given the opportunity to develop.

Unfortunately, the part of the brain which assesses risk is not fully functioning until about age 25 and the facts about alcohol use/abuse are not nearly as powerful an influence as the media, peers and even adults.  Consider the messages with which our students are bombarded each time they turn on the television – anything fun (parties, clubs, sporting events) is accompanied by alcohol.  The NFL even has an ‘Official Beer Sponsor’.  Our children grow up assuming that alcohol is a necessary part of a good time.  In addition, adults add to this by talking and laughing about their own experiences of intoxication while our kids are within hearing range.  Is it any wonder that alcohol has such a strong allure to teenagers?

Here are some sobering facts about teens and alcohol:

• In 2006, more than 19 percent of drivers ages 16 to 20 who died in motor vehicle crashes had been drinking alcohol.
• Of the 1,746 traffic fatalities among children ages 0 to 14 years in 2006, about one out of every six (17 percent) involved an alcohol-impaired driver.
• People who use both alcohol and drugs also are at risk for dangerous interactions between these substances. For example, a person who uses alcohol with depressants, whether these drugs are prescribed or taken illegally, is at increased risk of fatal poisoning.
• Intoxication is associated with suicide attempts using more lethal methods, and positive blood alcohol levels are often found in people who complete suicide.
• Teens who drink are more likely to engage in sexual activity, have unprotected sex, have sex with a stranger, or be the victim or perpetrator of a sexual assault.

So what can you do as a concerned/involved adult?

• Be informed. Visit websites like AbovetheInfluence.com , Cobb Alcohol Task Force and Webmd to read information about alcohol use/abuse among teens. Check out the following articles: “Underage Drinking Epidemic” and “Teens & Alcohol Study: After a few Drinks Parenting Style Kicks in” (an interesting article about how the way we parent affects the amount of alcohol our kids may drink).
• Know where your kids are, who they are with and what they are doing.
• Keep communication lines open and honest.
• Consider being a part of the Cobb Alcohol Task Force.
• Don’t be afraid to seek help if you need it.  Remember you are not alone.  Lots of families have struggled or are struggling with this issue.The above mentioned websites offer lots of suggestions for help in talking with your teens.  The counselors at Lassiter are a good resource as are the following:
  • www.al-anon.alateen.org
  • http://www.drugrehabtreatment.com/teenalcoholism.html

We hope that as a community, we can change the culture of underage drinking and alcohol abuse among our teenagers.

The Lassiter High School PTSA's Red 'e' Campaign is part of its participation in National Red Ribbon Week, which is the nation's oldest and largest drug and alcohol prevention program that reaches out to millions of students the last week of October each year.