While
a lot of local underage drinking prevention activities focus on youth and
parents, to be most effective underage drinking prevention activities should be
conducted by individuals and organizations throughout the community. The United States Surgeon General’s report
about preventing underage drinking provides examples of what can be done on the
community level.
For communities: Adolescents generally obtain alcohol from adults
who sell it to them, purchase it on their behalf, or allow them to attend or
give parties where it is served. Therefore, it is critical that adults refuse
to provide alcohol to adolescents and that communities value, encourage, and
reward an adolescent's commitment not to drink. A number of strategies can
contribute to a culture that discourages adults from providing alcohol to
minors and that supports an adolescent's decision not to drink. Communities
can:
Invest in alcohol-free youth-friendly programs
and environments.
Widely publicize all policies and laws that
prohibit underage alcohol use.
Ensure that community events do not promote a
culture in which underage drinking is acceptable.
Increase awareness of the latest research on adolescent alcohol use and, in particular, the
adverse consequences of alcohol use on underage drinkers, and other members of
the community who suffer from its secondhand effects. An informed public is an
essential part of an overall plan to prevent underage drinking and
to change the culture that supports it.
For the criminal and
juvenile justice systems and law enforcement:
Enforce uniformly and consistently all policies
and laws against underage alcohol use and widely publicize these efforts.
Gain public support for enforcing underage
drinking laws by working with other stakeholders to ensure that the public
understands that underage drinking affects both the public health and safety.
For governments and
policymakers:
Focus as much attention on underage drinking as
on tobacco and other drugs, making it clear that underage alcohol use is an
important public health problem.
Increase the cost of underage drinking: The “cost” of underage
drinking refers not just to the price of alcohol but to the total sacrifice in
time, effort, and resources required to obtain it as well as to penalties
associated with its use. Research indicates that increasing the cost of
drinking can positively affect adolescent decisions about alcohol use. In addition to price, the cost of underage
drinking can be affected by a variety of measures:
Enforcement of minimum drinking age laws and
other measures that directly reduce alcohol availability.
Enforcement should target underage drinkers,
merchants who sell alcohol to youth, and people who provide alcohol to youth.
Holding adults accountable for underage drinking
at house parties, even when those adults are not at home.
Any measure that decreases the availability of
alcohol to youth and so raises the cost of getting it.
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