Editorial

Make sure spring is time of celebration

Friday, April 14, 2006

Springtime traditions are wonderful -- the first robin, the first tulip, track meets and soccer. The senior prom and graduation.

Unfortunately, too many springtimes are marked by the tragedy of young people, just starting to live, who are killed in alcohol-related car crashes. Even if it doesn't lead to death, alcohol and its effects can be devastating for young brains still under development and young lives just beginning to bloom.

April is an appropriate time for Alcohol Awareness Month, and a good time to remind parents to do all they can to help their children avoid the danger alcohol presents.

As pointed out by experts like those at the Narconon Arrowhead facility in Oklahoma, the fourth leading cause of death among people ages 10 to 24 is alcohol.

It is a major factor as well in the three leading causes of death for youth, including suicide, motor vehicle crashes and homicide, and is linked to two-thirds of all sexual assaults and date rapes of teens and college students.

Underage drinking costs Americans nearly $53 billion, and alcohol is the number one drug problem among young people in the United States.

It's frightening and surprising to some that the average age that kids begin to drink is 12. And, people who start using alcohol before the age of 15 are four times more likely to develop an alcohol addiction at some point in their lives, compared to those who start drinking at the legal age of 21.

It has been estimated that more than 3 million teenagers are out-and-out alcoholics and several million more have a serious drinking problem that they cannot manage on their own.

That's why we support efforts to warn children and parents of the dangers of underage drinking and what can be done to prevent it.

And, we support community efforts to offer teens after-prom and graduation parties that are safe and alcohol free.

Let's do all we can to make this spring a time to celebrate life and growth, not to suffer from the effects of addiction and to mourn death.

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