The younger you are when you start drinking, the greater your chance of becoming addicted to alcohol at some point in your life. That’s why it is important to start talking early, and keep talking, to your children about the dangers of underage drinking. Learn more.
Parents, The Anti-Drug website reports that more teens start using marijuana, cigarettes and alcohol for the first time during the spring and summer months. So this is a good time to step up your prevention efforts.
The data from the latest Monitoring the Future (MTF) survey is encouraging. MTF is a survey of 8th, 10th, and 12th grade students that has been conducted annually since 1975. The 2016 results released in late December 2016 indicated that teenagers use of alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs declined in 2016 and the rates are at the lowest since the 1990s. Learn more.
Here’s what you can say if you did smoke weed when you were younger: “I’m not going to pretend I didn’t, and that’s why I’m talking to you about this. I will tell you that when I did smoke, my judgment was compromised and the only thing that prevented me from getting into some horrible circumstances was luck.” Learn more.
Join us for acclaimed speaker Harriet Turk’s interactive presentation about practical strategies for connecting with your teenagers, ages 13-19. Register now. 
“Little kids, little problems. Big kids, big problems.” There are few areas where that adage rings truer than with underage drinking. Here are the facts: It’s illegal. Most parents don’t condone it. It’s unhealthy. The best tactic is to delay it as long as you can.
In fact, there’s a lot of evidence that parents should strive to keep their younger teenagers away from alcohol because it damages the developing teenage brain.
But here’s another fact: Many teens are drinking. According to a Call to Action on Underage Drinking from the U.S. Surgeon General, by age 18, more than 70 percent of teens have had at least one drink. And they typically don’t stop at one. The report also found that teens are more likely to binge drink than adults: On average, teens have about five drinks on a single occasion.
Every day can be Family Day! Here are some great ways to stay engaged in your children’s lives:
Become a Family Day STAR today!
Source: How to Raise a Drug-Free Kid: The Straight Dope for Parents