Call 888-647-0579 to speak with an alcohol or drug abuse counselor.

Who Answers?

Campaign aims to steer kids off booze

Thousands of children are being admitted to the region’s hospitals with alcohol-related illnesses.

Statistics show more than 3,000 under-18s end up in hospital in North East England each year due to excessive drinking, 149 of those in South Tyneside hospitals.

The Department for Children, Schools and Families launched an advertising campaign to get parents to talk to their children about the dangers of drinking.

The campaign, Why Let Drink Decide? was launched yesterday by Children’s Secretary Ed Balls and comedian Bill Bailey.

It highlights the fact youngsters are far more likely to have unprotected sex and pregnancies, be involved in road accidents and achieve poor exam results if they regularly consume alcohol.

NHS South of Tyne and Wear pumped £5.6m into its Drink Less, Live More campaign in October last year, which set out to highlight the tragic effect binge-drinking has on the borough.

Mark Watson, Head of Service (Substance Misuse Commissioning) at NHS South of Tyne and Wear, thinks campaigns such as this one are helping.

He said: “National statistics released last year indicated that the proportion of 11 to 15-year-olds who have never drunk alcohol is increasing.

“Hopefully, campaigns such as the one announced today will continue this trend.

“Many key factors influence young people’s approach to alcohol, including parents and friends.

“Parents play a major role and it is important they engage with their children and talk to them about alcohol.

“Talking to young people before they begin to experiment with alcohol can help them make more responsible decisions.”

Figures show on average 149 under-18s are admitted to hospital in South Tyneside each year compared with 452 in Sunderland.

These include youngsters injuring themselves while drunk or needing to be monitored because they are violently ill.

Colin Shevills, director of Balance, the North East England alcohol office, said: “Research shows young people are 12 times less likely to drink alcohol if their parents set clear boundaries for them to follow.”

source: Shields Gazette

More Treatment & Detox Articles

Alcoholism remains a taboo issue

He seems to have it all. A tenured university professor in the Kansai region, fluent in English and partially conversant in Chinese, he is consulted by senior local business leaders seeking advice on doing business in the United States and Europe and has served on local government committees promoting international exchanges. But the professor, who….

Binge drinking linked to breast cancer

A leading surgeon says breast cancer rates could soar unless young women cut back on binge drinking – and that mammograms are being “oversold”. Dr Trevor Smith said alcohol was among the lifestyle choices that contributed towards New Zealand’s having one of the highest breast cancer rates in the world. He called on the Government….

Local Treatment or Far Away?

Your options for treatment differ greatly and although this may make it seem like it should be easy to figure out what to do, in some cases it only complicates matters. In fact, having so many options for addiction treatment to choose from—local, far away, private, traditional, open group or closed—can make the entire process….

School help for children of drinkers

Children with brain damage caused by their mothers drinking while pregnant are to get special help at school. More than 6,000 children are born each year with foetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) – a range of physical, behavioural and cognitive disabilities, including permanent brain injury, learning difficulties, poor co-ordination and hyperactivity. The Training and Development….

Are Americans in Denial about the Widespread Abuse of Prescription Drugs?

CASA’s just-released National Survey of American Attitudes on Substance Abuse, has found that those who fail to monitor their children’s school night activities, safeguard their prescription drugs, address the problem of drugs in their children’s schools, and set good examples increase the risk that their 12-17 year old children will smoke, drink, and use illegal….