Should Parents/Guardians Let Kids Drink At Home?

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A new study says more than 45% of teenagers get their alcohol from their homes because some parents/guardians believe it's better for their children to drink responsibly at home than drink irresponsibly with their friends outside the home and then drive back home and get in accidents or get DWI/DUI tickets on the way.

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These parents/ guardians presume teenagers will try new things anyway, so they might as well drink at home. Some say it depends on the child’s age. If they are like 12 – 15 years old and still attending sleep overs, and play dates, then it's not right for them. If they are older, like 16 - 21 years old, then maybe it is arguable.

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However, in my opinion when parents/guardians give their children anything bad including liquor, or cigarettes, the problem is that there's a subtext message saying that the act, such as drinking or smoking is okay, which contradicts a parent’s/ guardian’s role, which is to guide their kids in doing what it right, even if it’s not what they would necessarily do themselves. So the question to ask as a parent/ guardians is, "Is this the message I want to send to my kid(s)?"

 

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Going further, whether parents or guardians want to believe this or not, and would rather sing the, "do as I say," and not the, "do as I do" song, their actions often influence their children’s behavior and act as their children's life guide because their actions model behaviors that their children or wards probably will emulate, if not right away, in the future, so even if you don't give your children alcohol physically, but you drink in in their presence, you are psychologically giving it to them by putting your stamp of approval on the act of consuming alcohol, hence the saying, "The apple doesn't fall too far from the tree."

 

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Although there are exceptions to this rule, in reality, there are more people that fall into the same behavior patterns of their parents than those that escape it. That's why children of alcoholics often become alcoholics themselves or have one as a partner because their brain has psychologically recorded that that's what's normal when they were growing up, so they recreate the same negative environment as adults.

 

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No one is a saint, but as the saying goes, prevention is better than cure. If you don't want your children doing something now or in the future, stop doing it in front of them now, let them know the negatives of the act and don't encourage them to do it by not providing products that will encourage them to engage in such behaviors. This will help prevent them from doing it and let them know what your stand is about the product, so you don't have to run around in the future trying to find a cure for the bad habits they have incurred because you assisted in helping them see the negative act in a positive light.

A word is enough for the wise...