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<p align="center" style="margin-top: 1px; margin-bottom: 1px"><b><font face="Verdana" size="5" color="#0000FF">Health
Matters</font></b></p>
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<b><font face="Verdana" size="4">Ages 13 to 19: It�s <u><font color="#FF0000">
NOT</font></u> Miller Time</font></b></p>
<p align="center" style="margin-top: 1px; margin-bottom: 1px">
<b><font face="Verdana">By Peter Connolly, M.D.</font></b></p>
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<font face="Verdana" size="1">For several reasons, the teen age years
are not, in fact, a very safe time to start to use alcohol or other
intoxicants. Recent scientific studies suggest that, while kids are
starting to drink earlier than ever, the damage to the developing brain
is more immediate, and more long-lasting, than had been understood.
Teenagers have been drinking alcohol for centuries: drinking has been a
rite of passage in many cultures. Unfortunately, we are learning that
the fare for that passage is higher than we knew, and that the
adolescent brain is not as resilient as had been previously thought.
</font></p>
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<font face="Verdana" size="1">Although the bones and muscles stop
growing in mid-teens, brain tissue, especially the parts of the brain
that support judgment (frontal lobe), and memory (hippocampus), continue
to develop and remodel until the age of 20. Both of these areas are
damaged by even occasional alcohol use: this effect is much more
pronounced in adolescents. </font></p>
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<font face="Verdana" size="1">Perversely, the adolescent brain is less
sensitive to some of alcohol�s other, more obvious effects: in animal
studies sedation and impaired coordination occurred at higher levels of
alcohol in adolescent brains than in adults. Unfortunately this may let
an adolescent take in more alcohol before s/he feels impaired, allowing
for additional damage to cognitive functioning and giving a false
impression of control. If a teenager only stops when he can�t hold up a
drink anymore, he�s drunker, and has suffered more brain damage, than an
adult who used the same (bad) measure of when to say when.</font></p>
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<font face="Verdana" size="1">In a national survey, nearly a third of
high school student reported binge drinking (4-5 drinks in a row) within
the past month, according to statistics from the National Council on
Alcoholism and Drug Dependence: about half had used some alcohol at
least once. In the 2005 Youth Risk Behavior Survey at Needham High
School, two-thirds of Needham students reported at least one drink, and
32% reported one or more binge episodes in the previous month; 38%
reported using marijuana at least once. 60 % of students who had used
alcohol reported that their first drink occurred in middle school or
earlier.</font></p>
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<font face="Verdana" size="1"> </font></p>
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<font face="Verdana" size="1">There is emerging evidence that young
brains respond differently to alcohol and other drugs and may be less
resilient to the negative effects of these substances. According to a
recent article in the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, 47
percent of those who begin drinking before the age of 15 become addicted
at some point in their lives, in contrasts with 9 percent of people who
take their first drink after 20. More than 95 percent of adults who
abuse alcohol started drinking before the age of 21. Starting early
makes it much more likely that you�ll have trouble stopping.</font></p>
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<font face="Verdana" size="1">The increased risk from early alcohol use
is not limited to addiction: after the hangover is gone, the brain is
still not back to normal. After even one drink, the ability of brain
tissue to retain information is diminished: this effect lasts longer,
and is more pronounced, in brain tissue that is not yet mature. Studies
have shown that adolescents who had been intoxicated more than 100 times
scored significantly worse than non-drinkers in tests of verbal and
nonverbal memory, even weeks after their last drink (hello, Augustus
Busch: goodbye, Stanley Kaplan!). </font></p>
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<font face="Verdana" size="1"> </font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="justify" style="margin: 1px 5px">
<font face="Verdana" size="1">So: what can we, as parents and as a
community, do to keep our children safe, healthy, and substance free?</font></p>
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<font face="Verdana" size="1">We can talk with our children, and be
clear about the short-term and long-term risks of substance abuse.
The commercials are not wrong: do not be afraid to ask questions.
Adolescence is a very difficult time: our children need our help to
protect themselves from risky behavior. Research tells us that clear
guidelines and expectations are protective. More information is
available at
<a style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline; text-underline: single" href="http://www.mass.gov/dph/bsas/pubs_young_adult.htm">
www.mass.gov/dph/bsas/pubs_young_adult.htm</a> and
<a style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline; text-underline: single" href="http://www.theantidrug.com/">
www.theantidrug.com</a></font></li>
</ol>
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<font face="Verdana" size="1"> </font></p>
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<font face="Verdana" size="1">Become involved with the school and
your children�s activities. Find out more about the partnerships
developing between the schools, community and parents through the
MetroWest Community Health Care Foundation Grant: Reduce Underage
Drinking and Drug Use. Contact the Prevention Coordinator, Deborah
Engler, at
<a style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline; text-underline: single" href="mailto:[email protected]">
[email protected]</a>. Find out about multiple new
initiatives.</font></li>
</ol>
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<font face="Verdana" size="1"> </font></p>
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<font face="Verdana" size="1">Our community and neighborhood�s can
be valuable resources when it comes to keeping our kids safe and
healthy. Get involved with parent groups to connect with other
parents and develop common limits and expectations. Work together
to provide alternatives, both for safe recreation, and for
alternative channels to enable our kids to deal effectively and
safely with the considerable stress of adolescence in this society.
</font></li>
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<font face="Verdana" size="1">Talk with members of Town government
to encourage action. A place to start is the the Tolman Substance
Abuse Prevention Committee, chaired by the Assistant Town Manager
and includes representatives from Fire, Police, Health, Council on
Aging, Youth Commission, Veterans, Public Schools and the Town EAP.
</font></li>
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<font face="Verdana" size="1"><i><b> Dr. Connolly is Vice Chair of the
Needham Board of Health, and a Member of Town Meeting.</b></i> </font>
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