Mother Talkers

Shocking figures on Australian tween and teen drinking

by Rachel

Mon Feb 25, 2008 at 04:04:25 PM PDT

A week ago, Sue in Queens asked us all How many kids do drugs? Well, if you’re talking about Australia, the answer is, a lot more than you want to see, and more children are developing health-threatening proclivities, according to this article in today’s The Age. Excuse me for doing a blatant cut-and-paste job, but the statistics are summed up as follows:

CHILDREN as young as 12 are seeking help for alcohol abuse as new figures from a major Melbourne drug treatment centre reveal a six-fold increase in cases of young people with drinking problems.

Some are drinking a slab of beer [NB: a slab is 24 cans of beer]Rachel or a bottle of spirits a day and have developed serious health problems such as cirrhosis of the liver or hepatitis C. Cannabis dependency has also risen sharply, with some children smoking it to block out the pain of abuse.

Youth workers from Victoria's biggest drug treatment service for under-21s, the Youth Substance Abuse Service, say alcohol and cannabis dependence are now more common than heroin addiction.

The new figures from the service come ahead of a separate report to be released today from the Australian National Council on Drugs, which will warn that 20% of 16 year-olds are drinking to harmful levels in any given week, while one in every 200 children aged 12 are drinking at harmful levels.

The ANCD report combined several major statistical studies on substance abuse for the first time. It warned that extra support for the family members of young substance abusers — including siblings — was needed.
Figures released to The Age show that the Youth Substance Abuse Service treated 776 cases of alcohol problems last year — up from 136 in 2002.
Cannabis cases rocketed from 608 to 1213, while heroin cases plummeted from 824 to 286.

The inhalation of toxic substances such as spray paint, glue and petrol (known as chroming) has also doubled.

And users are getting younger, with 12 to 15-year-olds accounting for 12% of all drug treatments — up from 9% in 2002

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This is not an article you want to read with your first cup of coffee in the morning. The article goes on to cite one of the report’s conclusions, that substance abuse was less likely to occur in households where parents disapprove of alcohol use:

Today's ANCD report will argue that alcohol and substance abuse is less likely among young people whose parents actively disapprove of alcohol use.

"Drug and alcohol use by young people has become normalised and is often seen as a rite of passage to adulthood," ANCD chairman Dr John Herron said.

The report estimates that at least 451,000 Australian children are at risk of exposure to binge drinking by an adult.

One of the report's authors, Dr Sally Frye, said a family environment where children were not exposed to alcohol was less likely to lead to binge drinking habits than one where parents try to gradually introduce their children to alcohol.

I have a question as to how this part is written - "actively disapprove", in the reporter's words, is different to "not exposed to alcohol", Dr. Frye's words. And what does "not exposed to alcohol" mean? Does that mean not drinking in front of your child? Not offering your child sips or drinks? It's a bit vague. What say you, MTs? I grant you that news reportage will focus on phrases like “six-fold increase”, but I have to say that personally, any report that teenagers are drinking themselves into cirrhosis is a worrying circumstance.

Tags: teens, tweens, drugs, alcohol, abuse, Australia (all tags)

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  • yeah, that's confusing (0 / 0)

    "Not exposed to alcohol". That could, as you say, mean a lot of things. And what then would be an appropriate way to show teens what it means to drink a glass of wine and call it a day?

    12 year olds in rehab is really sad though.

    by RachelD on Mon Feb 25, 2008 at 06:42:03 PM PDT

    • no kidding (0 / 0)

      under-20-year-old kids with decimated livers is, perhaps, worse. Particularly considering that Australia has a dire shortage of donor organs! (whoo, linking two front page stories together. Synchronicity!)

      by Rachel on Mon Feb 25, 2008 at 06:44:42 PM PDT

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    • I tend to wonder about these things. (0 / 0)

      There are plenty of people who'd tell you they drink moderately, and are still drunk a couple of times a week. My anecdotal experience is that you can get a bit of an idea of what direction people will go from there exposure, but not nearly as much as you might think - there are plenty of those who were completely forbidden alcohol while at home who stay on the straight and narrow, but some go off the deep end the moment they get to "break the rules." Some who get exposed to drunkenness at home and so want no part of it in their own lives, and plenty who see it and emulate it. And after that, there's circles of friends, and life events that you have even less control over. I didn't drink to get drunk 'til I had a particularly bad breakup, at which point I drank myself under the table and didn't stop for months. It's hard to control for that stuff.

      I tend to think that the difference between reasonable exposure and nothing at all is negligible if there's good education going on, and that the difference is more down to the fact that those who are stringent in keeping their children from alcohol are also more likely to make sure their children are educated. I've got no evidence for that, it's just gut feeling.

      "You're never more alone than when you're alone in a crowd."

      by Expat Briton on Tue Feb 26, 2008 at 07:54:17 AM PDT

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  • this research jives with what i have seen... (0 / 0)

    the notion of "breaking" kids into drinking has been largely found to be ineffective.  and research i have seen here in the states also supports the notion that parents who make clear their expectations around drinking, as in zero tolerance, have good results.

    i talk and talk about drugs and alcohol and i will till my dd is in her twenties. i also monitor like crazy.  you can do this without being a total control freak.  i keep reiterating the facts and keep my kid talking to me.

    we have living proof of how bad it can be.  my step daughter is still lost on the streets to meth, coke and alcohol addiction.  we live day by day praying she is alive and that we will find her.

    by parentalunit1 on Mon Feb 25, 2008 at 08:11:35 PM PDT

  • I'm scared... (0 / 0)

    Ever since I moved here (ten years ago now), I've noticed that the culture of drinking is heavily ingrained. I remember remarking to my DH about a year after we got here "it's an entire country of alcoholics!". No social situation is complete without alcohol. Lots of it. People go to the cricket and the footy and get smashed. People go to work parties and get smashed (and is it just me, or is vomiting in front of your boss and colleagues just not good form?!). People go to their kids' school concert and get smashed. People have neighbourhood parties and get smashed. I have never yet been in a social situation (including a late afternoon mother's group) where there wasn't alcohol. Copious amounts of it. Now don't get me wrong...I love a good drop of wine. I may even occasionally have too much of it. But it's a side effect of enjoying the wine. It's not the intent. And it happens very rarely.

    I was watching the "Today" show when this story came on. And after running the story, the sports guy and the main anchorman started talking about going to the game and drinking. On a morning news program. I think that says a lot about this culture.

    So how can you tell your kids not to binge drink when every adult around them is modeling binge drinking behaviour? I know that my husband and I model responsible, very light drinking. But we're a rarity. I don't have a prayer of keeping my kids out of it.

    by aussieyank on Tue Feb 26, 2008 at 02:52:09 AM PDT

    • you do have a prayer... (0 / 0)

      we live in a community that while perhaps not as bad as what you report, still significant social alcohol.  swim meets are attended by parents who bring coolers of margaritas and then proceed to get hammered.  parents sneak alcohol into high school football games.  and yes we do have a higher propensity of teen binge drinking.

      however...i firmly believe that we have kept my dd safe due to the excellent drug alcohol and sex ed she rec'vd in middle school prior to moving to the community. my advice, and i actually shared the same with my brother last night as my niece will be going to middle school next year,  find a good science, non judgemental, fact based drug and alcohol education program.  i would bet the australian schools don't provide this, but perhaps there is a private program.  

      my dd and her friends from her middle school are so far at 17 steering clear.  now not ALL of her former classmates have but the difference between what they experiment with and what goes on in this community is significant.  none of her former classmates binge drink, the worst is some smoke pot from time to time.  but all of them understand what each drug can do to their bodies. all of them understand that none of them can predict who of them can become addicted to meth or coke.  and they know what happens to their brains and why these drugs make you feel good but they also know the consequences.  this is just not the case in our current community.  most of these kids are truly clueless to the facts.

      if you can't find a program let me know.  i have the outline of the curriculum my dd and her classmates went through from the director of her former school.  he trained for this program and taught it to the kids.  

      by parentalunit1 on Tue Feb 26, 2008 at 07:15:34 AM PDT

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    • I don't get it (0 / 0)

      I feel horrible after and even while drinking more than a glass or two, and the thrill of drunkenness wore off a long time ago.  It is a mystery to me why people (aside from true addicts) want to keep it up at age 35 and beyond.

      Katherine

      by pat of butter in a sea of grits on Tue Feb 26, 2008 at 10:06:04 AM PDT

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    • oof, I hear you (0 / 0)

      Aussie drinking culture is shocking. It's a real worry.

      by Rachel on Tue Feb 26, 2008 at 12:01:08 PM PDT

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      • scotland.. (0 / 0)

        dd has expressed an interest in applying to schools in scotland.  i worry a bit about the whole pub culture.

        by parentalunit1 on Tue Feb 26, 2008 at 01:02:29 PM PDT

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        • The student culture is a bit different.. (0 / 0)

          ..to the general culture on that. Yes, there's lots of drunkeness, yes alcohol is easily accessible, and yes bars are where people mostly socialise, but unlike in much of the wider culture, it's not my experience that people are pressured into drinking alcohol or belittled for having a soft drink while they're out. More than that, my experience is that there isn't a faster way to make yourself a social pariah than by drinking and driving, which is a big improvement over my perception of American attitudes (of course, reasonably priced taxis and prolific public transport helps with this).
          If she's responsible and has the relevant knowledge, I wouldn't worry (then again, I grew up there, and really miss the pub culture).

          "You're never more alone than when you're alone in a crowd."

          by Expat Briton on Wed Feb 27, 2008 at 09:10:39 AM PDT

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