The holiday season is upon us and it occurred to me that the season - with gatherings of friends and families and celebrations with all the trappings — creates a natural [not forced] opportunity to have a conversation about responsible drinking with teens. With that thought in mind, it’s useful to have a tool that prepares you for common comebacks used by teens and general misconceptions about alcohol use.

I found that a website hosted by The Century Council was a great resource on this topic, providing information that helps adult cover what could be considered unstable ground on some thought provoking statements such as:

It is hypocritical of me to forbid my children to drink alcohol when he/she sees me enjoy a drink or two when I am socializing, eating or celebrating.
Since teens are going to drink no matter what we say, we might as well have them drink in our homes where we can keep an eye on them and take the car keys away.
Teens need to practice drinking in high school so they learn their limits early and don’t go wild in college.

Diageo’s zero tolerance stance on underage drinking clearly disagrees with these statements, and so does the author of the website’s Ask, Listen, Learn “The Parent Trap”, Brenda Conlan, a health educator who developed the information as a public service in conjunction with Century Council and Nickelodeon.  Check out the website — before your next family gathering.