Sexy Hot Beauty

A US study has revealed nearly 40 per cent of primary school-aged children have consumed alcohol, some without their parents’ knowledge.

University of Pittsburgh associate professor, John E Donovan, a co-author of the study, said the result was surprising given that previous studies had shown alcohol consumption among teenagers at only six per cent.

Even among much younger children, “the reality is that nearly seven times as many have had some experience,” Dr Donovan said.

While some children surveyed had received alcohol from parents during religious ceremonies or family gatherings, many admitted to obtaining it without their parents’ knowledge.

“A third of the mothers and half of the fathers whose children have sipped alcohol are not aware of it,” Dr Donovan said.

He said having parents who drank alcohol was a predictor of whether children would sip or taste it, but children were also exposed to drinking through commercials and characters in shows, films and half of all cartoons.

Paul Dillon from Drug and Alcohol Research and Training Australia believes the figures may be higher in Australia and says they demonstrate how prevalent alcohol is in our culture.

“You only have to look at the coverage of New Year’s Eve celebrations. Everywhere you looked people had a drink in their hand,” Mr Dillon told AAP.

“It’s reinforcing the whole idea that being an adult and having fun means that you have to have alcohol, and that’s pretty sad.”

He added that while many parents may give children a sip of alcohol at special events, attitudes were starting to change.

“We’re starting to see more people becoming aware of the impact of alcohol at an early age,” Mr Dillon said.

“People are thinking it may not be a good idea.”

The authors of the US study plan to continue monitoring alcohol use by the children in the survey as they grow into their teenage years.

“We still do not have a clear sense of what the longer-term outcomes are of early sipping/tasting,” said co-author Robert A Zucker, director of the University of Michigan Addiction Research Centre.

“Only when this study, and others like it, follow these children into adolescence will we have the full picture of what the long-term consequences of this early experience are.”

The study results are published in the January issue of Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research. – Stuff NZ