What Makes Teens Tick

“Excessive drinking and substance use can temporarily impair mental abilities, but these effects may be longer lasting in adolescents. Teens who use alcohol or drugs heavily show delayed or incomplete development of frontal-brain regions responsible for regulating attention and decision-making; alcohol seems to be particularly detrimental to planning skills while pot affects memory.” TIME, November 1, 2010, p 20.

This statement is based on research due to be released in January, 2011 in Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research, vol. 35, No 1, 2011: pp 1-8.

For a more in depth review of what modern technology has taught us about the developing brain and how that research impacts our current policies and practices, see, "What Makes Teens Tick," TIME, September 28, 2008.

In a nutshell: Adolescence is a time of rapid maturation for the human brain. This process is influenced in large part by exposure and experience. For parents, this can mean the last bite at the apple to shape your child’s brain development. This is profoundly challenging when a teens’ natural reaction is to push back. One highly recommended course of action is seek out the other adults in your child’s life, form an alliance, and be armed with the facts. One fact is clear, alcohol can have an adverse affect on the developing teen brain.

Learn more, visit: 21 Reasons at: http://www.21reasons.org/; or Partnership for a Drug Free America at: http://www.drugfree.org/

Princeton Reviews Encourage Illegal and Dangerous Behavior

According to a Portland Press Herald article, the well-known Princeton Review Top Party Schools list for the 2010-2011 academic year has been released-- and this year the University of Georgia ranks in at #1. Despite increasing police force on underage drinkers since 2006, the University of Georgia is up from its #4 spot in last year’s ratings, and school officials are finding it hard to believe that they would acquire this title. The University says they take student alcohol education programs seriously, and they find it very disconcerting and surprising that their efforts aren’t presenting the results they had hoped for.

However, while many are looking at colleges to blame for underage drinking and partying, it’s surprising how little responsibility is being put on the Princeton Review itself for reporting and reinforcing the idea that the purpose of college is heavy drinking.

Why does there need to be a ranking list? Promoting where the best party schools “rage,” and where the “reefer madness” occurs, as described on Princeton’s website, is not only hurtful to the school’s reputation itself, as Georgia feels, but it is also a risky venture. Glorifying and perpetuating the idea of “party schools” as a positive thing only encourages high school kids to look for schools where drinking is heavily prevalent. College drinking puts students at risk of death, injury, assault, academic problems, and more, according to College Drinking Prevention statistics.

So, how are students or colleges truly gaining from the publication of such material? The catchy titles and popularity of the Princeton rankings actually encourage the illegal and dangerous behavior and can attract students to these colleges purely for non-academic reasons.

Creating a sense of shame associated with making it to the top party school position may further help move forward college efforts to reduce and prevent high-risk drinking, and at the same time we should always be pushing for college administrations to curb the drinking activities and tone down the party atmosphere on campuses. But maybe we should also be looking at the instiller of the problem itself—cultural expectations.

Alcohol Metabolism Testing: Harmful or Helpful?

According to a recent New York Times article, the University of California at Berkeley is giving incoming freshmen students a unique way to bond with each other before the first day of school: sending in a DNA sample to be analyzed for an individual’s ability to metabolize alcohol, lactose and folates. The school’s stated intention is to help students think critically about genetic testing, but their choice of alcohol as an “innocuous” gene test topic is questionable.

According to the schools FAQ section for students about the test:

The second gene encodes an enzyme called aldehyde dehydrogenase. This is one of a series of enzymes involved in metabolizing (digesting) alcohol. We will test for a variant of this gene that is associated with flushing (red face) and nausea after drinking alcohol. Since most of you are below the legal age for drinking alcohol, we strongly suggest that you not drink regardless of the results of this gene test.

Despite the school’s disclaimer, giving this kind of test to first-year students, most of whom are 18 or 19 and years away from legally drinking, sends a message that drinking is expected. We’re not the only ones who think so.

There’s also the risk that someone might misunderstand the results, test negative and not think any guidelines pertain to them, therefore assuming they can drink as much as they want.

Other critics say that it is irresponsible to provide any genetic testing outside of a medical setting, because there is no chance for those receiving the results to get feedback or ask questions. Once a student learns whether or not they have a gene that makes their face flush when they have alcohol then what? Who do they go to? Even if there are, as the New York Times article states, follow up “lectures and panels with philosophers, ethicists, biologists and statisticians exploring the benefits and risks of personal genomics,” this does not take the place of individualized counseling.

Alcohol is a critical discussion topic for any freshman orientation. Presenting such a serious topic as a harmless genetics issue, lumped together with lactose and folate, is inappropriate and potentially harmful. What do you think? Should UC Berkeley use genetic testing in this way? Should genetic testing related to alcohol be a part of it?

USDA Guidelines on Alcohol Consumption

via Join Together

A USDA advisory committee has proposed new Dietary Guidelines for Americans including substantial changes about alcohol that concern many public health and addiction experts.

The real-world effect of the proposed new alcohol guidelines would likely be to encourage greater daily drinking, discourage appropriate caution about using alcohol for health benefits, and open the door for the alcohol industry to misrepresent federal alcohol consumption guidelines to consumers. ...The USDA is inviting online public comments about the proposed guidelines, but you must act very soon -- the deadline is Thursday, July 15.

...Read our blog post and Dr. Tim Naimi's excellent commentary, then follow the links to submit your comments to the USDA. We've linked to some helpful talking points from Marin Institute in the blog post.

What do you think about the USDA alcohol consumption guidelines?

Portland Police and local bars partner up for prevention

Regarding youth and underage drinking:

As seen recently in the press, there is a new initiative launched by the Portland Police, Portland Downtown District, and the Night Life Oversight Committee. While these plans were hatched many weeks ago, the press conference in Monument Square served as an appropriate backdrop.

All of us at 21 Reasons are saddened by this recent tragedy, which is one more example of the incredible damage that can result when young people are exposed to alcohol.

The vision of 21 Reasons is to build a community where youth are alcohol-free. This is because young people’s brains are still developing; they simply aren’t wired yet with the impulse control or judgment to handle the influence of alcohol.

21 Reasons is proud to partner with the Portland Police Department and the Night Life Oversight Committee to help realize our vision—and theirs—for a safe and legal Old Port.

As part of our partnership, we offer a variety of resources and support for Portland alcohol licensees, including signage, low-cost seller-server training, and a resource guide that explains laws and best practices for liquor licensees. In addition, we host a website, MaineBAC.org, that aims to reduce high risk (binge) drinking among young adults.

We hope that this tragedy will help raise awareness that the dangers of underage and high risk drinking go far beyond drinking and driving. Two thirds of underage alcohol-related deaths have nothing to do with automobiles. It is more likely that youth who drink will die from unintentional injuries—such as drowning, falls, burns—or death from homicide or suicide.

Beyond the mortality statistics, youth who drink alcohol experience adverse effects in brain development, and are at an increased risk for developing alcohol use disorders as adults. Alcohol also plays a role in youth depression, sexual assaults, vandalism, and other violence.

This tragedy is one more sad illustration of the importance of preventing underage and high risk drinking, and how we all need to do a better job—not just alcohol establishments, but also parents and other adults—in making sure underage youth do not have access to alcohol.

Infographic of the day

Figure 1. Percentages of Past Month Alcohol Use among Persons Aged 12 to 20, by State: 2006 to 2008

Alcohol for a cause

Last week’s Portland Phoenix has an article about “drinks for a cause” (Fine Wine, Fine Cause by Leischen Stelter, March 31, 2010)—a way to raise money that has been gaining popularity in recent years. Alcohol and fundraising can seem to go inevitably together.

21 Reasons staffer Jen Hodsdon worked in the development field for many years, and responds to the Phoenix article:

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard development people say that they need event attendees to get a few drinks in them before they’ll start bidding in fundraising auctions or donating money. I think it comes from a larger cultural situation in which adults feel like they need to drink to get together. However, I’d like to encourage non-profit organizations, especially ones that serve youth, to consider reducing or eliminating alcohol-based fundraisers.

It’s true that fundraising events can feel awkward, because the people there are getting together for a cause rather than because they necessarily like each other—and alcohol is a shortcut to relaxation.

But youth watch what adults do, and tend to mimic the behavior and beliefs of adults that they admire. They observe how we calm our anxieties and relax, and drinking to do this can send the message that alcohol is a necessary tool for relieving stress—and can encourage teens to self-medicate with alcohol to relieve their own stressors and anxieties.

To avoid sending this message, adults can demonstrate and discuss other ways to get over the anxiety of getting together with strangers, like using icebreaker games or practicing conversation topics before the event.

Event planners might also believe that everybody is serving alcohol at their events—and they fear that people won’t attend if there’s no alcohol or if it’s restricted. However, I did a survey last year of 185 Portland non-profits, and about half of the respondents said that they didn’t hold any events that served alcohol!

And, it turns out, most adults don’t mind: a national survey showed that 80% of adults support restricting alcohol sales at events. In addition, alcohol-free fundraisers would be more appealing to people who prefer events that are free from alcohol-related problems.

21 Reasons has released a guide for non-profits on serving alcohol at community events. It give tips for managing risk if you do decide to serve alcohol, and some things to consider if you’re thinking about going alcohol-free. The guide is available digitally or in hard copy by emailing Jen.

"I shouldn't have done it because I was not sober"

One of the many risks for underage drinking is unintended sexual contact.


Several young people described this experience during a recent Real Life. Real Talk. event.

Click on the logo below to see the clip from the "It's okay. You can say it." campaign, in which community members were invited to talk about what they wished someone had told them about sex:

UMaine Greek Students Participating in Alcohol-Free Week

This week (October 19-25) University of Maine students are participating in an alcohol-free week hosted by the Greek Peer Educators Program. The point of the week—which falls during homecoming this year-- is to encourage students to spend a week alcohol-free. "This is offering you an opportunity to figure out what kind of role alcohol plays in your life," says Greek Peer Education Founder and Director Sarah Caron.

In the past, participation has been between 1,000 and 3,000 students; this year’s goal is for participation by 2,008 students.

The University of Maine student paper covers the event in depth.

While college drinking is a serious national problem, it’s good to keep in mind that many college students don’t drink at all. According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, nearly 40% of 18-24 year olds reported no alcohol use in the past month, and only 14.9% reported heavy alcohol use.

Maine’s Higher Education Alcohol Prevention Partnership has some great resources on preventing and reducing campus alcohol use available on their website.

Study Suggests "At-Risk" Teens Aren't The Only Ones At Risk for Alcohol Problems

A new study out from the University of California, Irvine suggests that substance abuse programs geared towards at-risk youth are missing almost half of their audience. Efforts to reduce or delay early substance exposure should not be restricted to at-risk adolescents, researchers say—all adolescents exposed to alcohol suffered :

“Specifically, we asked whether there is evidence that early exposure to illicit substances is a causal factor in adolescents’ future lives (“are drugs bad for kids?”), or whether adolescents with a developmental history of conduct problems are simply more likely than other adolescents to be exposed to alcohol and illicit substances and to experience poor adult outcomes (“do bad kids do drugs?”)…

“Results support the policy position that early substance exposure poses independent risks for adolescents’ future lives; these risks extend beyond the development of later substance dependence, to include risks for herpes infection, early pregnancy, and crime. With respect to prevention, it is important to note that in our study, 50% of the adolescents exposed to substances before age 15 did not have a prior history of conduct problems, yet they experienced many of the same ill consequences as their peers who are already at risk.”

Here's a link to the full study, published in the October Edition of Psychological Science.

(via The Daily Pilot)

Bar Dispersal Ordinance

Requiring adequate distance between bars is essential not only to protect public safety, but also to maintain a healthy economy and quality of life. A solid base of research suggests that as alcohol outlet density goes up in a community, so do crime, violence, and motor vehicle crashes.

The Portland Police Department, the Portland Downtown District, and the Night Life Oversight Committee all agree that 100 feet is the minimum space required to prevent problems with overcrowding of bars. If it were up to 21 Reasons, there would be even more breathing room between bars-–at least 200 feet.

We need to be intentional about the future development of our downtown district. We need to promote diversification, so that we have a healthy mix of retail, restaurants, bars, and residences. Just as we have set-back requirements for new construction, we need to have "set-back" requirements for new bars going into this zone. We all want our downtown entertainment district to grow as a destination that is exciting, vibrant, and safe. Please help that to happen by maintaining a 100 foot buffer zone between bars.

Furthermore, we need to respect the process and previous efforts of our civic leaders. This issue has been studied, discussed, and decided upon only one year ago. There have been no significant environmental or cultural factors which warrant a revisit to all the hard work and thoughtful consideration that went into the 100' bar dispersal ordinance. To bring this up again so soon afterwards is disrespectful to our civic leaders and the process by which they adopted the ordinance.