Alcohol and young people
alcohol; alcoholic; intoxicated; intoxication; binge; spiking; drink;
drinking; spike;
Contents
Young people try alcohol for many reasons.
They might be curious, or want to be one of the group.
- Some drink because it makes them feel older, or because it gives them a certain image among friends.
- Some drink when they go to parties and nightclubs to enjoy themselves more. The alcohol might make them feel more relaxed.
- Some use alcohol to help them sleep or to forget things.
- Some need to drink every day just to get through the day because they are dependent on alcohol.
The National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) released guidelines about drinking alcohol when under 18 years in 2009:
'...children under 15 years of age are at the greatest risk of harm from drinking and that for this group, not drinking alcohol is especially important.'
'For young people aged 15-17 years, the safest option is to delay the initiation of drinking for as long as possible.'
NHMRC 'Australian Guidelines to reduce health risks from drinking alcohol' February 2009 Guidelines
When can young people drink alcohol?
The information that follows is a guide to the law in South Australia. If you live elsewhere, check your local laws. There are references below for more information about the laws in South Australia.
If they are under 18:
- They will be guilty of an offence if they obtain or drink alcohol in licensed premises, a restaurant, café or shop, an amusement parlour or amusement arcade, a public place that is being used for an organised event, or in public transport.
- They cannot enter or remain on premises where a late night permit or an entertainment venue licence is in place, or licensed areas which are declared out of bounds to minors.
- If they drink, are sold or are given liquor on licensed premises, they, the licensee, the person supervising and managing the premises, and the person who supplied the liquor will each be guilty of an offence. They could be fined.
- If they consume or possess liquor in a public place, they will be guilty of an offence unless they are accompanied by a parent, guardian or spouse.
There is no law which makes it an offence for a person under 18 to drink alcohol in a private home. If there is a party in a private house, it is not an offence to supply children under 18 with alcohol, but a responsible adult should serve it to minimise the risk of over-consumption.
Alcohol cannot be supplied to young people under 18 if there is an entrance charge to the party or the alcohol is being sold.
Having a party?
You do not need to have alcohol at parties.
If you are going to have alcohol available:
- Make sure you have some low-alcohol and no-alcohol drinks.
- Use small glasses.
- Have food available.
- Let people know if there is alcohol in a drink such as punch or fruit cup and let them fill their own glasses.
- If they've drunk too much, don't let them drive - either call a cab, ask a non-drinker to give them a lift home, or give them a bed for the night.
Spiking drinks
It might seem like 'just fun', but many young people have gotten into serious trouble when someone has put something into their drink without their knowledge. Sometimes alcohol is added to drinks that appear to be free of alcohol. Sometimes other drugs are added.
The person whose drink is 'spiked' could become very sick, or try to do something that is dangerous (like driving while affected by the alcohol or drug). They could be sexually assaulted. This is sometimes called 'date rape'.
For more information have a look at the topic Drink spiking.
Dangerous drinking
Small amounts of alcohol do not harm most people, but many young people drink in unsafe ways, or do things which could be dangerous while alcohol is affecting their judgement and skills.
Many young people drink to get drunk (binge drinking) at least once a month, and some do this much more often.
- Binge drinking can cause alcohol poisoning, which can cause death.
- Young people, especially young women, are at high risk of abuse, including rape, when they are drunk.
- Young people who are drunk can do very dangerous things, such as driving, swimming (most people over the age of 12 who drown are affected by alcohol), and getting involved in fights.
o Over 3,300 14-17 year olds were hospitalised for alcohol related injury and disease in 1999/2000 in Australia.
o During the ten years from 1993 to 2002, an estimated 501 under-aged drinkers died from injury or disease related to risky/high risk alcohol drinking in Australia.
What is an alcohol problem?
People have different ideas about what 'problem drinking' or an 'alcohol problem' is – but most would agree that it involves a level of alcohol use which causes ongoing troubles in the lives of the alcohol users and of their families and friends.
Some of the problems could be:
- drinking leading to arguments and fights
- problems at work, like being late, not turning up for work, causing accidents at work because of being drunk or hung-over
- problems at school, TAFE, Uni like being late, taking days off, not getting work done or in on time
- being in road accidents because of being drunk or hung-over
- money worries because all the money is spent on alcohol
- being arrested for drink-driving, having drink-driving fines to pay, loss of driver's licence, or going to jail
- health problems - alcohol can be pretty rough on the body
- becoming dependent on alcohol (sometimes called alcoholism)
- drinking more and more alcohol to feel the effects.
More information
There is more information about alcohol and its affects in the Teen Health topics
- Alcohol – the facts
- Alcohol – drinking too much.
The Australian Drug Foundation and Victorian Department of Education and Early Childhood Development have recently released a series of Fact Sheets for parents about alcohol and young people.
- Alcohol and adolescent development
- Alcohol, teenage parties and the law (Victoria)
- Standard drinks and low risk drinking
- Fact or myth
- Medicines and alcohol: a dangerous mix
- Which parental factors influence young people's choices about alcohol
- Teenage drinking: parent's communication style can make a difference
- Teenage drinking: communicating with other parents and families
Resources
South Australia
- Drug and Alcohol Services South Australia
http://www.dassa.sa.gov.au/site/page.cfm
- Alcohol and Drug Information Service - telephone 1300 13 13 40 – 24-hour confidential telephone counselling and information.
- Aboriginal Drug and Alcohol Council (SA) Inc – telephone (08) 8362 0395:
http://www.adac.org.au/
- Al-Anon/Alateen Family Group (for families of people with a drinking problem)
- telephone (08) 8231 2959 (24 hour service) or (08) 8212 6824.
- Department of Education and Children’s Services Drug Strategy:
http://www.drugstrategy.central.sa.edu.au/
Australia
References
Australian Government Department of Health 'Under-aged drinking among 14-17 year olds and related harms in Australia' November 2004
http://www.ndri.curtin.edu.au/pdfs/naip/naip007.pdf
Drug and Alcohol Services South Australia - ‘Alcohol’:
http://www.dassa.sa.gov.au/site/page.cfm?u=112
Lawstuff, know your rights - ‘When can I drink alcohol?’
www.lawstuff.org.au
National Centre for Education and Training in Addiction (NCETA) 'Young people and alcohol – the role of cultural influences' 2008
The information on this site should not be used as an alternative to professional care. If you have a particular problem, see a doctor, or ring the Parent Helpline on 1300 364 100 (local call cost from anywhere in South Australia).
This topic may use 'he' and 'she' in turn - please change to suit your
child's sex.