Survey reveals dangers of parents letting teens drink alcohol at home

Parents who let their teens drink alcohol at home should beware, with a new study revealing surprising results about their future booze habits.

A new study has found teens who are allowed to drink alcohol at home often develop bad relationships with booze.

One third of Australian teens drink alcohol at home, supplied by parents who think it’s helping their kids form good habits, a new study has found.

But drinking at home while underage is linked to more risky alcohol consumption later in life, Australian Institute of Family Studies research shows.

The study of more than 3000 adolescents and their parents revealed 28 per cent of 16 to 17 year olds had permission to drink at home and around one fifth is allowed to take alcohol to parties.

Lead researcher Dr Brendan Quinn said it was important parents encouraged their children to wait as long as possible before starting to drink.

“All alcohol use is associated with a risk of experiencing associated harms,” he said.

“In some cases, parents may be allowing their teenagers to drink at home in the belief that supervised alcohol consumption could facilitate a more responsible relationship with alcohol and reduce potential harm, however research suggests early alcohol use could lead to harmful drinking practices, both now and later in life.”

The results showed 23 per cent of those who drank with permission while underage had experienced alcohol-related harm, compared to 17 per cent of those who drank without permission.

Those who were allowed to drink at home also tended to drink more often.

“Parents and carers can play a critical role in helping prevent — or delay — a young person’s initial use of alcohol,” Dr Quinn said.

“Open conversations about alcohol between parents and their children will help prepare young people to make informed decisions for times when they encounter alcohol outside of the home, whether that be with friends or in other social settings.”

The comments reflect the changing advice about teens and drinking. As the AIFS report notes, prior to 2009 official advice was that supervised alcohol consumption could reduce potential harm. This meant some parents allowed their children to drink at home to learn responsible drinking practices.

But Dr Quinn said parents and teenagers need to be aware of the National Health and Medical Research Council’s current guidelines, which recommend delaying alcohol use until at least the age of 18 — even in environments or circumstances that might be considered low risk.

Originally published as Survey reveals dangers of parents letting teens drink alcohol at home