Many teenagers are eager to leave home and join college life because of drinking, but many parents are behind such trend. A new study found that parents who give their kids alcohol before it is even legal for them to drink are harming them in the long run.
A group of Australian researchers claims that the strategy to expose an underage kid to alcohol at home in an attempt to shield him or her from the downsides of booze is terribly misguided.
In the study, researchers monitored nearly 2,000 parents and teens for six years to see what really happens when kids are supplied with alcohol in their parents’ homes. Lead author Richard Mattick of the National Drug and Alcohol Centre noted that the strategy is largely employed in Mediterranean countries.
Many parents in those countries believe that exposing their teens to small amounts of alcohol may reduce the risk of alcohol abuse in adulthood. Some U.S. parents use the same logic, which was recently proven to be deeply flawed.
Parents’ Alcohol Introduction Strategy Has No Scientific Base
The research team tracked the negative effects of drinking in teens like alcohol abuse, binge drinking, and addiction. The study revealed that kids who were exposed to alcohol at a young age were more prone to start drinking and obtain it themselves through a means or another.
- Researchers also found that giving teens alcohol does not protect them from the downsides of alcohol abuse.
- Past studies have reached a similar conclusion.
Dr. Emily Feinstein, who was not involved in the study, said that many parents apply this strategy at home and they acknowledge it in parenting surveys.
There is no scientific research to suggest that giving your kids alcohol early on prevents addiction,
Feinstein warned.
On the contrary, many studies have found that the risk of alcohol abuse decreases each day parents delay their kids’ exposure to alcohol.
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