Whenever he conducts focus groups about teens and alcohol, researcher Richard Yoast sees a distinct pattern emerge.
“The kids say the parents greatly underestimate the amount of drinking going on, and they never think their kids are drinkers,” said Yoast, director of alcohol programs at the American Medical Association. “The parents in our focus groups say they do know there is a lot of drinking among teens. But they also say, `Not my kid.'”
Yoast is a former tobacco- and substance-abuse scholar who has turned his attention to underage drinking. What qualifies as underage has become even more disturbing in recent years. Yoast said the “age of initiation” for kids can be as early as junior high.
Although some of today’s parents are not proud of their own underage drinking days, Yoast said, it shouldn’t stop frank discussions with children. No matter what others might say, the research clearly shows that pre-teens and teens remain greatly influenced by their parents as role models and teachers of values.
“I tell parents to share what they learned about underage drinking rather than be silent and ashamed of it,” Yoast said. “I would talk about the pressures that come for other kids. I would point out the negative things that could have happened in your own experience.”
The glamorization of underage drinking is apparent by any review of advertising and marketing. In late January, the AMA released a policy briefing paper that asks whether the alcoholic beverage industry is “partner or foe” on the issue of teaching kids about responsible drinking.
If well-researched policy documents don’t convince you, ask yourself this question: Do you know what an “alcopop” is? It’s the newest alcoholic beverage category that includes lemonade-flavored drinks that mask the 5 percent alcohol content. The Center for Science in the Public Interest reports that kids are overwhelmingly more aware of the various brands than adults.
The answer to whether alcoholic beverage makers are partners or foes is complex. Siding with “foe” is almost too easy. Calling the alcoholic beverage industry “partner” makes too many people uneasy.
“I see plenty of well-produced [public service] materials from the beverage industry, but it is never clear in any of the messages what `responsible drinking’ means,” said Yoast, whose programs are co-sponsored and funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
Yoast explained that alcohol abuse or problem drinking occurs any time it interferes with one’s responsibilities, endangers yourself or others and impedes health and well-being. Responsible drinking would be avoiding those situations.
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“There is also the assumption by beverage advertisers that everybody is drinking or will drink,” Yoast said. “The language reads `when adults drink’ rather than `if’ adults drink.”
David S. Anderson, an alcohol-intervention specialist at George Mason University in Washington, D.C., shares the perspective. He said beverage makers skip a vital step in their advertising and marketing messages.
“I take exception with [industry] campaigns to drink responsibly,” said Anderson, director of the Center for the Advancement of Public Health at George Mason. “I do not want to subtly endorse drinking. We need to first promote a clear and independent choice on whether someone wants to drink. That’s first. Then you can talk about drinking responsibly.”
Of course, the beverage industry isn’t likely to quit its own version of leapfrog. One estimate is that underage drinkers represent about 10 percent of the alcohol market, or $10 billion.
Nonetheless, Yoast and Anderson agree that alcoholic beverage makers need to be part of making policy.
“Industry at every level, such as the manufacturers, distributors, wholesalers and retailers, should be at the table along with government, schools, public health groups, parents and kids themselves,” Anderson said.
For now, parents might have the best opportunity to make a difference, and Yoast said research can help make the case.
One point is that classmates are likely drinking less than a child thinks. The AMA paper found that most college students are moderate drinkers or abstainers. Another stat, scary enough, shows that 83 percent of 12- to 17-year-olds reported abstaining from alcohol in the last month. Anderson said another study shows that 40 percent of college-age Americans drank five or more drinks in one day at least once during the last two weeks.
Any way you analyze it–or even lament the underage drinking that does exist–not every young person is drinking. But that doesn’t mean parents should stop asking.