Parents play a key role in shaping young people’s attitudes and behaviours towards alcohol

As part of European Awareness Week on Alcohol related Harm (AWARH), the HSE is highlighting the essential role parents play in shaping young people’s perspectives and decisions around alcohol. Research shows that the later young people start drinking, the better for their long-term health and wellbeing. In Ireland, while the legal drinking age is 18, many young people begin experimenting around age 15.

Evidence indicates that delaying drinking can help avoid long-term health risks, including alcohol’s impact on brain development and an increased risk of cancer in adulthood. It’s also advised not to provide young people with 0% alcohol alternatives. They can contain up to 0.5% alcohol and may normalise drinking and increase exposure to alcohol brands, leading to greater alcohol use. Research on 0% alcohol products is emerging and suggests that they can act as a gateway to alcohol use amongst young people.

Bobby Smyth, HSE Adolescent Addiction Psychiatrist says:

“Parents can start to feel less influential in their children’s lives as they become teenagers and become more independent but the research shows that you still have a very important role to play in keeping them safe. Have regular and open conversations about alcohol, understanding boundaries and what’s expected of them. This will help to shape your teen’s attitudes and help them make informed decisions as they get older that will keep them safe.”

The earlier young people start drinking, the more likely they are to:

• have problems with alcohol as an adult
• drink more often or too much
• have problems with attention and memory
• have mental health difficulties such as anxiety or depression
• take risks or behave in unsafe ways - for example, fighting or having unsafe sex
• be a victim of a crime
• have other health problems

Research shows that giving your child alcohol at home under your supervision is not a safe way to introduce them to alcohol. Young people who get alcohol from their parents, even small tastes, are more likely to start drinking at an earlier age, binge drink, and experience harm from alcohol. The majority of parents in Ireland do not give alcohol to under 18 year olds. 

Irish research has explored the influence of parents on their children’s alcohol use using data from the Planet Youth survey conducted in 2022 with over 4,000 15-16 year olds in the West of Ireland. The research found that just over one third (35.2%) of parents had supplied alcohol to their children. Young people were more likely to have started alcohol use at a younger age (12 years) if parents were tolerant of adolescent drunkenness, supplied alcohol to their children, and did not engage in monitoring or rule setting in relation to alcohol use. Having parents who monitored them and were easily accessible for parental advice protected young people from early alcohol use.