June 16, 2004

NEW POLL REVEALS OVER THIRTY-THREE PERCENT OF KIDS HAVE CONSUMED ALCOHOL

(Easton, PA) A new survey conducted by the Weller Health Education Center has exposed dramatic increases in youth encounters with alcohol. The survey shows that nearly 34 percent of children between the ages of 9 and 13 in the Lehigh Valley have tried alcohol at least once. Strikingly, only 28 percent report being offered alcohol, meaning some children are seeking it out on their own.

The Weller Center participated in a national research project with the KidsHealth KidsPoll project, which gives children the opportunity to share their opinions on health-related issues. Ninety-two children participated in this survey during a visit to the Weller Health Education Center and nearly 700 students took part in the survey at six locations nationwide.

The national average of children 9 to 13 who report being offered alcohol is 29 percent.

Approximately 21 percent of respondents say they have been offered alcohol “once or twice, but not often” and most frequently by adults they know, which includes parents. Thirty percent of students have tried “more that just a sip” of alcohol once compared to 18 percent nationally; however, only 1.1 percent of students in the Lehigh Valley drink more that a sip of alcohol each week contrasted with 3 percent nationally.

The reasons given for drinking are ageless. Sixty-five percent of children surveyed said that drinking makes them cool. Twenty-five percent claim they just want to see what it is like and 2.2 percent say they just have nothing else to do. Perhaps more interesting there is a major discrepancy between non-drinkers and frequent drinkers (more than once a month) in regard to why children their age drink. Seventy-nine percent of local children who do not drink say that others do because they think it makes them cool. Only 50 percent of their drinking counterparts agree with that statement.

“I think this information can be interpreted to show that alcohol remains a major gateway drug.” Kris Martin, director of education at the Weller Health Education Center, said.

The best ways to keep kids from drinking, according to the survey, were to give them other fun things to do, teach lessons about alcohol use in schools and have people with alcohol problems come in and talk about their experiences.

The Weller Health Education Center has developed age-appropriate drug abuse prevention programs including “Drugs: Choice or Chance,” and “Binged to Death” to help children understand how drugs and alcohol affect the body and decision-making abilities.

About the Weller Health Education Center

Masters-level health educators use hands-on, interactive methods to measurably improve kids’ lives by giving students the tools they need to make informed and healthy life choices. With more than 30 age-appropriate programs from kindergarten to twelfth grade, the Weller Health Education Center meets state health and science academic standards in Pennsylvania and New Jersey and serves to complement and supplement conventional classroom learning.

About the KidsHealth KidsPoll

A project of the National Association of Health Education Centers (NAHEC), the Nemours Center for Children’s Health Media (creators of www.KidsHealth.org), and the Department of Health Education and Recreation, Southern Illinois University Carbondale (project researchers), the KidsHealth KidsPoll gives children a national platform to share their views on health-related issues that affect them. Throughout the school year, regular KidsHealth KidsPolls will reveal kids’ opinions on issues such as obesity, bullying and alcohol use. For more information about the KidsHealth KidsPoll, please visit www.nahec.org/KidsPoll.

About the National Association of Health Educations Centers (NAHEC)

NAHEC is the national association and network of nonprofit health education centers (HECs) and of other organizations that support children’s health education and provide products and services to HECs. NAHEC member centers reached over three million children, teachers, and parents in 2003. HECs use life-size exhibits, advanced audio-visual technology, and specialized, interactive instructional techniques not generally found in conventional classrooms. The curriculum is designed to support school-mandated areas of study. With programs like “Blood & Guts,” Hummers outfitted with removable organs, and playgrounds modeled after anatomy parts, you’ll see why former U.S. Surgeon General Dr. C. Everett Koop proclaimed that health educations centers “put pizzazz in prevention.” For more information about NAHEC, please visit www.nahec.org.