Will Your Kids Spend The Summer Drinking And Using Drugs?

April 22, 2008 - PRLog -- (OAK RIDGE, NJ)—With the end of the school year approaching, the nation’s children look forward to no more teachers, no more books—and a lot of time at home alone.

“Most parents work, and unfortunately don’t really know what their kids are up to all day,” says Stephen Della Valle, author of the new addiction and recovery memoir Rising Above the Influence. “Summer is a prime time for unsupervised parties, which often include alcohol and even drug abuse.”

Surveys have shown that thousands of kids try marijuana for the first time during summer break. In addition, twenty-four percent of teenagers report having their first alcoholic drinks while on summer vacation.

“Parents need to be aware of what substances they have at home, and keep track of them,” says Mr. Della Valle. “There’s nothing wrong with getting locks for your liquor or medicine cabinets, just to make sure that no one gets into them.”

When it comes to underage drinking and drug use, the statistics are often shocking:
• Forty-one percent of students try alcohol before entering eighth grade
• Seventy-five percent of students consume alcohol by the end of high school
• 7.2 million teens are considered binge drinkers; 2.3 million are heavy drinkers
• Fifty percent of high school students try an illicit drug by the time they graduate
• Twenty-six percent of kids know a friend or classmate who abuses prescription medications

In addition, kids between the ages of twelve and seventeen who know that their parents strongly disapprove of drug and alcohol use are less likely to fall victim to substance abuse.

“The best thing a parent can do,” notes Mr. Della Valle, “is talk to their kids about these issues, and let them know what is expected of them.”

Stephen Della Valle is president of the board of directors at Turning Point rehabilitation center in Verona, New Jersey. Currently celebrating twenty years of sobriety, he lives in Oak Ridge, New Jersey, with his wife, Donna. He has three children.

Rising Above the Influence is available now (ISBN: 0-9801776-0-X; softcover; Oak Ridge Press) on Amazon.com, Borders.com, BarnesandNoble.com, and at fine bookstores everywhere.

Website: www.arborbooks.com