April was National Alcohol Abuse Awareness Month and as usual the city, state and antional agenciers joined forces to get the word out that alcohol remains one of the biggest drug problems in the country. It also continues to kill more teenagers through drunk driving, than all other fatal illnessses combined.

The NCADD Amethyst put forth "a call for concern and action" in spotlighting the continuing problems with underage drinking. "We have chosen once again to revisit underage drinking and its presence as a continuing critical public health issue. The data on the onset of alcohol use at increasingly younger ages is compelling. Three million `14 to 17 year-old children are regular drinkers with confirmed alcohol problems."

Children find easy access to alcohol in their own homes jand establishments knowingly serve underage drinkers. Alcohol is everywhere- and education, prevention as well as "zero tolerance" still appear to be in the forefront of manageable solutions.

Children are most influenced by the media, in the home and by peers. Research indicates that early use of alcohol by teenagers may contribute significantly to dependence on alcohol and other drugs. In fact, 40% of children who begin using alcohol before age 13, will become alcoholics at some point in their lives. So one of the most obvious moves in countering use, is not to sanction the use of it in the home or anywhere else, in the first place.

As the Amethyst points out, "Early use may have a profound and persistent effect on children's physical and psychological development, even into adulthood. Parental involvement can be of tantamount importance when it comes to discouraging children from pursuing unhealthily lifestyles.

Lest we forget alcohol is and always has been a powerful mood-altering drug- which has profound effects on a child's developing nervous system. Statistics show if the onset of drinking is delayed by five years, a child's risk of developing serious alcohols problems is decreased by 50%.

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome

As with teens, alcohol consumption by pregnant women continues to be a major health risk also. Fetal Alcohol Syndrome occurs when a mother drinks during pregnancy and birth defects occur to the fetus. F.A.S. remains the leading known preventable cause of mental retardation.

FAS is defined by four criteria: maternal drinking during pregnancy, a characteristic pattern of facial abnormalities, growth retardation and brain damage, which often manifests as difficulty learning new information, retaining old information or behavioral problems.

According to a National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism newsletter: Alcohol Alert, a recent study found "children exposed to alcohol exhibit a variety of problems with language and memory."

Children of mothers who drank heavily during pregnancy perform poorly on tasks that involve the learning spatial relationships among objects.

Attention problems have been considered a hallmark of prenatal alcohol exposure. Consequently FAS is often incorrectly diagnosed as Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).

Differences in intelligence are based in part on how quickly the brain processes information. Prenatal alcohol exposure has been associated with slower, less efficient information-processing in school-age children. Children have also demonstrated impairment, in the areas of planning and organizing.

Calendar for May 2002

"Sacred Sexuality" Class for Women is being held on Mponday, May 20 & 27 by Helaine Harris, M.A. M. F.T. Ms. Harris will present topics such as: "Healing Sexual Trauma", "Your Body as Your Temple" and other popular approaches of mind/body techniques. Cost: $40 per class. Call (818) 782-6869 for more information and location.