When it comes to talking to youth, we all know it is important. We all know it takes time, but did you know it works?! They listen and watch everything. The low risk drinking guidelines can give us all a framework to talk to youth and show them ways to lower their risk of alcohol-related problems.
When talking to youth, we should make clear that there are several types of risk associated with drinking alcohol.
Type of Risk |
Result |
| No Risk | This is when there is no known increased risk for any problems related to drinking alcohol. The only way to have no risk is to not drink alcohol. This is an option for everyone, however, it is not the only option. |
| Low Risk | This refers to drinking within limits which produce less of a chance of high risk problems related to drinking alcohol. This does not mean that there would be no problems. The problems which occur using the low risk drinking guidelines would tend to be less. |
| High Risk | This refers to drinking above those low risk limits and produces a greater chance of high risk problems related to drinking alcohol. These problems could include legal problems, health problems, job and relationship problems. The problems produced by high risk drinking also tend to be longer lasting than those produced by low risk drinking. |
Most youth are not trying to experience high-risk outcomes. While they like to have fun, most people also want to stay safe. To stay safe, stay within the low risk drinking guidelines:
0 = under 21, pregnant, trying to conceive, on medications
1 = up to one per day for women
2 = up to two per day for men
If you want to find out more about the Parents Who Host, Lose the Most program and how you can curb underage drinking, visit this site: Drug Free Action Alliance
Check out our video, Here