An interesting and shocking statistic recently revealed that 90% of Australian youth had tried alcohol by the age of 14.  The risk of serving alcohol to underage drinkers goes far beyond the legal ramifications for the server. Alcohol consumption by teenagers can have dangerous and far reaching consequences. 
 

Under Responsible Service of Alcohol law serving alcohol to minors carries major fines for workers, management and owners of establishments, but the real cost of serving teenagers are the social consequences, such as teenage drink driving, teenage pregnancy and teenage violence.
 

Perhaps the most serious and common danger associated with drinking in general is the amount of people that get behind the wheel while intoxicated. This is not limited to teens, but it is a leading cause of death in teenagers.
 

A lot of the teenage drinking occurs during “schoolies week” or the week when teens celebrate the closure of school. Parents need to be aware of this and guard their children against it.
 

An even more problematic issue that teens than drink occasionally are teens that develop a habit of alcoholism. Alcoholism is a substance abuse disorder in which the sufferer has problems managing how much alcohol they drink, and their lives as a result. Because teenagers are not mature – physically and emotional, they are more susceptible to addictions and make rash decisions when intoxicated. 
 

The symptoms of alcoholism include tolerance to alcohol, withdrawal episodes, using more alcohol for longer periods of time, and problems managing life issues due to alcohol.  Often teenagers may try to dull their adolescent problems with alcohol.  Alcoholism is caused by a number of individual, family, genetic, and social factors rather than by any one cause. 
 

Alcoholism is diagnosed by evaluating whether the individual shows a number of symptoms of problem drinking on a regular basis.  
 

Causes of Alcohol Abuse in Teens
 

One of the main factors contributing to teenage addiction are family risk factors. These include little parent care and supervision, lack of communication from parents, inconsistent or severe parental discipline, abuse, bullying at school or among peers and a family history of alcohol or drug abuse. Individual risk factors include problems managing impulses, emotional instability, thrill-seeking behaviour and perceiving the risk of using alcohol to be low due to insufficient guidance and peer pressure.
 

According to documented research girls who drink, as well as teens who begin drinking prior to 14 years of age or those whose mothers have drinking problems, are more likely to develop alcoholism. Also studies show that teens who have a good relationship with their mothers in particular, are less likely to develop a drinking problem.
 

Symptoms of Alcohol Abuse in Teens
 

While the symptoms can be similar or exactly the same as adult alcoholic’s symptoms, some of the most common symptoms of alcohol abuse in teenagers include lying, making excuses, breaking curfew, staying in their room, becoming verbally or physically abusive toward others, having items in their possession that are connected to alcohol use, the smell of alcohol on their breath or body, mood swings, stealing, and changes in friends.
 

One of the most common occurrences amongst teenage drinkers is alcohol poisoning. This is the potentially fatal result of drinking excessive amounts of alcohol in a short period of time, the body is not able to process the amount of alcohol introduced to it. In teens whose bodies are still developing and do not have any alcohol tolerance this problem is particularly relevant.  It is caused by alcohol slowing down the body’s functions such as breathing, heart rate, and gag reflex), thereby potentially leading to choking, coma, stopped breathing, stopped heart, and death. Treatment involves getting the teenager to the hospital immediately so he or she can be closely watched by medical professionals, given oxygen and fluids, and so that other measures can be taken in order to prevent choking, as well as stopped breathing or heartbeat.
 

While parents play the biggest role in influencing teenagers, peer pressure is also a major cause of drinking. Parents can’t prevent their teenagers from experimenting with alcohol, but they can encourage sensible drinking habits and display a good example for their children to follow.
 

Those in a position to serve alcohol to underage minors need to be aware of the ramifications of their actions not only for themselves for the teenagers involved. Serving alcohol to a teen may affect the rest of their life or cut it short, so be responsible rather than their friend – it could save their life.
 

Posted by Peter Cutforth