Wendy Tepfer, director of the Community Parent Center, has written the following in regards to Alcohol Awareness Month.

It’s springtime, the season when high school students tend to celebrate: starting with receiving a driver’s license, spring break, the prom, graduation parties and culminating with a long summer vacation. It's also the time when teens can experience the consequences of drinking too much, at too early an age. As a result, underage drinking is a leading public health problem in this country.

April is Alcohol Awareness Month. The Community Parent Center encourages parents to educate themselves and then talk to their teens about alcohol abuse, drug abuse, and other risky behaviors.

Since 1987, the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence, Inc. has sponsored Alcohol Awareness Month as a national public awareness campaign in an effort to safeguard the future of our youth by preventing them from drinking alcohol. This is an ideal time for parents and teens to focus their attention on the dangers of alcohol use and abuse, especially underage drinking. If parents have already had this conversation with their teens, then now is a good time to reinforce the issues and expectations.

Alcohol remains the No. 1 drug problem for adolescents. According to the 2009 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, “adolescents use alcohol more frequently than they do all other illicit drugs combined.”

The rates of current alcohol use in the survey were 3.5 percent among youth aged 12 and 13, 13.0 percent among 14 and 15-year-olds, and 26.3 percent among 16 and 17-year-olds. More than one million adolescents needed treatment for alcohol abuse, although the vast majority did not receive it.

Alcohol use can be a major factor in motor vehicle crashes, overdoses, homicides, suicides and unintentional injuries, which are some of the leading causes of death among youth.

The teenage years can be a volatile time of life as teens’ physical and emotional states are constantly changing. They are living in a society that places demands on them to "grow up much too fast." When they add alcohol to this mix, they have a recipe for the potential of life-threatening and life-long consequences.

Adolescents are especially vulnerable to the effects of drinking. They may think that because they're healthy, drinking won't hurt them. They are wrong.

The American Academy of Pediatrics’ (AAP) policy statement on teen drinking stresses the important role that pediatricians play in discouraging children and teens from drinking alcohol. Alcohol consumption can interfere with adolescent brain development, and use of alcohol early in life is associated with future alcohol-related problems, because it:

• Contributes to the leading causes of teen deaths: accidental injury (particularly car accidents), homicide and suicide
• Increases greatly the chances teens will engage in other risky actions such as substance use, unsafe sex and violent behavior
• Increases the likelihood of dangerous binge drinking, compared to alcohol use among adults; and
• Affects developing brains and general health, including possibly harming liver function and ability to fight infections

The Long Island Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence (LICADD) says: “most parents know by now that providing alcohol to minors is wrong and it’s illegal.” They offer suggestions, for talking with your children about alcohol and drug use:

• Listen: The key to effective communication is being a good listener. With teens, it is important to make the time to listen to them, especially when they’re ready to talk.
• Know What to Say: Find your own words, times and places that are comfortable for you to talk. You might stumble a bit, but that’s okay. Think about what you’d like to say and then speak from the heart.
• Make Time: Establishing regular “together time” with your child does a lot to foster trust and honest communication.
• Talk One on One: If you have more than one child, try to talk to each one separately, even when it’s about the same topic.

In addition to having an open conversation with your teen, the Community Parent Center urges parents to set a good example when it comes to your own drinking behavior.

Be a good role model.