Alcohol: Parents and caregivers of youth

Alcohol: the important role of adult influencers

As a parent or caregiver, you can impact your child’s decisions and attitudes about alcohol. Though it may not always seem like it, young people pay attention to what their parents and caregivers do. This observation starts early in a child’s life and influences their values and behaviours as they get older, including how they interact with alcohol and other drugs. This not only means modelling responsible and healthy behaviours yourself, but also taking the time to learn about your child’s thoughts and speaking to them about substance use.^1,2

Do you want to help youth make healthy choices about their alcohol use?

It comes down to relationships – having a positive, supportive relationship with your child will help them to make healthier choices when coping with life’s struggles. One of the most important building blocks in a young person’s life is having a healthy, meaningful relationship with an adult. In turn, youth are more inclined to respect limits and to show healthy decision making when they are surrounded by adults who are supportive and understanding, yet who exercise firm boundaries and encourage them to develop and use their strengths.²

What can you do?^1,2,3

Talk to youth early and often about alcohol in developmentally appropriate ways. Have specific rules about drinking alcohol and be consistent in setting expectations and enforcing rules. Youth listen more when messages are conveyed with confidence and consistency.
Be clear and respectful in your interactions with youth and be attentive and understanding of their concerns and opinions.
Youth who know the expectations that their adult role models have about under-age drinking are more likely to follow them.
Always model responsible alcohol consumption. Youth learn from your actions.
Work with other adults to monitor where youth are gathering and what they are doing. Being involved in their lives is key to keeping them safe.
Work in and with the community to promote dialogue about underage drinking and the creation and implementation of action steps to address it.
Don’t provide alcohol to underaged youth. It is against the law.

Never provide alcohol to a person who is underage.

Despite what you may have heard from other parents, research consistently shows that children who are given alcohol under parental supervision or on special occasions – even sips and tastes – are more likely to²:

Start drinking earlier in life
Binge drink
Obtain alcohol from other sources
Experience harm from alcohol

Want to learn more?

There are resources available from Drug Free Kids Canada on information about alcohol and how to talk to your kids about alcohol:
Talking with your kids about Alcohol
Drug spotlights: Alcohol
Youth and Alcohol (PDF)
Talking about alcohol (AlcoholThinkAgain) is an Australian website aimed to provide facts about underage alcohol use and tips for talking to young people about alcohol.

Drug Free Kids Canada. (2019). Youth and alcohol. https://www.drugfreekidscanada.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/DFK_Info_YouthAlcohol_FINAL.pdf
(2024, January 17). For parents. https://alcoholthinkagain.com.au/alcohol-and-young-people/for-parents
AlcoholThinkAgain. (2023, December 6). Talking about alcohol. https://alcoholthinkagain.com.au/alcohol-and-young-people/talking-about-alcohol

This item was last modified on September 19, 2024