The Latest Science on Teaching Kids to Drink Responsibly
By Denise Rivette
A National Geographic article by Rachel Fairbank published January 27, 2025, explores the latest science around instilling in youth a healthy attitude toward alcohol.
“There was this long history of people thinking that if you taught your kids how to drink, then they wouldn’t have problems with drinking,” says Lindsay Squeglia, a researcher at Medical University of South Carolina, in Charleston, South Carolina. “Research over the past couple of decades has really shown that is not true.”
Instead, as research is showing, parents can have a major influence on their teenager’s relationship with alcohol, especially if they model responsible drinking behaviors and establish firm boundaries.
The studies were consistent across cultures and around the world. Underlying the consistency are the facts that the human brain continues to develop for the first 25 years and that the last portion of the brain to physically develop is the frontal cortex. The frontal cortex is responsible for executive functions: the set of mental skills that includes working memory, flexible thinking, and self-control.
The article ends with the determination that by staying engaged with their teenager and staying up-to-date with their lives, parents, “can help prevent bigger problems down the road—which may include helping them navigate a safe relationship with alcohol.”
You can read the entire National Geographic article by Rachel Fairbank HERE
Included in the article were the following links to other National Geographic articles that might interest you: