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Underage Drinking in Teenage Girls
By Dr. Elise Herman,
Ellensburg Pediatrics
The teen years are a time of
increasing independence and freedom. For
some girls, that may mean experimentation with alcohol and drugs. Sadly, as
girls become more equal to boys in many areas, they are also catching up in
terms of underage drinking. In a
national study of 12-17 year olds, those reporting
alcohol consumption in the past 30 days was slightly higher for girls than boys
(17% for females, 16% for males).
According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, ninth
grade girls now participate in binge drinking at rates (23%) that are
increasing and almost equal to their male peers (26%).
Adding to the risks for
girls with underage drinking, the same amount of alcohol has a greater effect
on girls than boys because of lower average body weight. Females also have less body water than males,
so the same amount of alcohol will result in a higher concentration of alcohol
in girls’ blood. In fact, girls get
drunk faster and stay drunk longer than boys.
The dangers of underage
drinking for girls are substantial. When
polled by the Century Council (a national not-for-profit organization funded by
leading distilled spirits producers) almost 3/4 of teen girls acknowledged
there were serious health issues with teen drinking. They cited alcohol poisoning, rape,
unplanned/unsafe sex, STDs and pregnancy as the greatest concerns. They have reason to worry-- teenage girls who
drink heavily have a fivefold risk of engaging in sexual intercourse compared
to nondrinkers, and are a third less likely to use a condom. Additionally, we are all aware of the deadly
combination of drinking and driving and one study showed this as an area of
concern to 75% of teens polled.
Alcohol may be more tempting
for teen girls who often feel pressure to have sex or even just to be sexy, as
it makes the drinker feel more relaxed and less inhibited. Peer pressure seems to have more effect on
girls than boys with regard to drinking, possibly because of plummeting
self-confidence among many adolescent girls.
So how do we help our
daughters avoid this dangerous and increasingly frequent behavior? Firstly, we have to acknowledge the reality
and risks of teen drinking. Parents tend
to underestimate their daughter’s experience with alcohol, perhaps because we
are still under the mistaken presumption that underage drinking in girls is not
common. We also must understand that we
can be an important influence on our children in this area- don’t sell yourself
short! Studies have shown that teens
whose parents talk with them about this are less likely to participate in
harmful behavior involving alcohol including drinking and driving.
Remember to avoid lecturing,
and to seek to have an honest, open discussion with your daughter. As the parent (and not the friend) it is our
responsibility to set limits and discuss consequences of risky behavior. There are good web sites to guide parents (www.girlsanddrinking.org) and
girls (www.grltalk.org)
with regard to this important issue.
The Kittitas County
Community Network and the Network Board, through a federal Drug Free
Communities grant, is implementing the “Start Talking Before
They Start Drinking” as a community service for parents. For more information on the campaign, go to
www.kccn-dfc.com.
