Contact: Barbara Cimaglio (503) 945-6998
Marianne Macina Hoffman (503) 945-7042

Underage drinking remains at epidemic levels in Oregon

Unlike tobacco, alcohol use among Oregon's youth is not declining, according to a new state survey of more than 18,000 students.

Some 43 percent of the state's 11th graders are likely to consume alcohol in the next month, according to the results of the Oregon Healthy Teen Survey 2001 released today by Oregon's Department of Human Services (DHS).

"This isn't just one drink now and again, more than half of the 11th grade students surveyed in 2001 said they had been drunk at least once," says Barbara Cimaglio, DHS special assistant for child and adolescent health services.

In addition, the survey indicates that nearly one out of four Oregon eighth graders are also likely to consume alcohol within the next 30 days (see graph below).

"Alcohol is the number one drug of choice among America's teens and it remains a problem of epidemic proportion in Oregon," says Cimaglio.

"Teen drinking is the number one source of adult alcoholism," she says, adding: "Youth who begin drinking before age 21 are more than twice as likely to develop alcohol-related problems during their lifetime."

Cimaglio says that while many adults view underage drinking as a harmless rite of passage, it is not.

The Healthy Teen Survey confirms her belief. When compared to nonusers in their class, Oregon eighth graders using alcohol are:

• up to 1.8 times more likely to seriously consider attempting suicide,

• as much as 2.4 times more likely to carry a gun,

• up to 2.3 times more likely to skip school, and

• more than twice as likely to get poor grades.

Survey findings show that 11th grade alcohol users also are also more likely to do poorly in school, drop out, carry a gun and attempt suicide than those who do not drink alcohol.

"And, when we consider the students who admitted to having five or more drinks in a row, the likelihood for poor performance and risky behavior increased dramatically," says Cimaglio.

Eighth graders having five or more drinks in a row are:

• up to 7.9 times more likely to get poor grades,

• 3.5 times more likely to skip school

• more than three times as likely to carry a gun, and

• up to 3.1 times more likely to seriously consider attempting suicide.

Of the 11th graders who said they had consumed alcohol in the past 30 days, one out of every four said they had engaged in excessive drinking (five or more drinks in a row).

Both 11th and eighth graders who use alcohol and other drugs are much more likely to engage in criminal behavior such as selling illegal drugs and stealing automobiles.

They are also likelier to engage in risky behavior such as sexual activity, joining a gang or driving a vehicle after drinking or using drugs.

Cimaglio says this is a grave situation and adults, especially parents, need to get involved.

"Parents need to understand that alcohol alters the structure and function of the brain," she says. "Mixing alcohol and other drugs with a growing brain can cause permanent and irreversible change."

Cimaglio suggests that parents talk to their teens and pre-teens about alcohol and how it can affect them for the rest of their lives.

"Parents need to let their children know that underage drinking is not acceptable," she says. "They need to explain that even adults have rules regarding alcohol and some adults, because of body types and genetics, can't tolerate alcohol either."

Cimaglio warns parents and adults to practice what they preach, setting an example for youth. In addition, parents need to know where their children are, whom they are with and what they are doing.

National and state surveys have shown that when parents ask a lot of questions, show that they care, and impose strict rules, underage drinking rates drop.

"Parents can make a difference," Cimaglio says. "And they need to. Unless we stop the cycle of teen use and addiction, we are creating future generations of alcohol and drug abusers."

The Oregon Healthy Teen Survey 2001 polled nearly 7,500 eleventh graders and nearly 11,000 eighth graders in 202 schools in the state during the 2000-2001 school year. The Survey was conducted by DHS with assistance from the Oregon Department of Education and was funded through a grant from the Oregon Research Institute, an independent behavioral science research center established as a corporation in Eugene, OR, in 1960.