What happens when you make alcohol and pot available

The Age, February 25, 2008

Drinking and cannabis problems hitting children as young as 12
By JILL STARK and PETER KERLINK

CHILDREN as young as 12 are seeking help for alcohol abuse as new figures from a major Melbourne drug treatment centre reveal a six-fold increase in cases of young people with drinking problems.

Some are drinking a slab of beer or a bottle of spirits a day and have developed serious health problems such as cirrhosis of the liver or hepatitis C. Cannabis dependency has also risen sharply, with some children smoking it to block out the pain of abuse.

Youth workers from Victoria’s biggest drug treatment service for under-21s, the Youth Substance Abuse Service, say alcohol and cannabis dependence are now more common than heroin addiction.

The new figures from the service come ahead of a separate report to be released today from the Australian National Council on Drugs, which will warn that 20% of 16 year-olds are drinking to harmful levels in any given week, while one in every 200 children aged 12 are drinking at harmful levels.

The ANCD report combined several major statistical studies on substance abuse for the first time. It warned that extra support for the family members of young substance abusers — including siblings— was needed.

Figures released to The Age show that the Youth Substance Abuse Service treated 776 cases of alcohol problems last year — up from 136 in 2002.

Cannabis cases rocketed from 608 to 1213, while heroin cases plummeted from 824 to 286.
The inhalation of toxic substances such as spray paint, glue and petrol (known as chroming) has also doubled.

And users are getting younger, with 12 to 15-year-olds accounting for 12% of all drug treatments — up from 9% in 2002.

Across all ages, 40% of the service’s clients have been diagnosed with a mental illness, such as drug-induced psychosis. Many have been kicked out of school and have lost contact with family.
Youth workers say children traumatised by bullying, sexual abuse and domestic violence are increasingly turning to alcohol and cannabis.

Ipsita Wright, director of the youth service’s south-east region, said the void left by police crackdowns on hard drugs such as heroin meant alcohol and cannabis were much more popular.
She said cheap, colourful alcopops were attractive to young people. ‘‘It’s obviously intentional from a marketing perspective and we see people who develop quite significant problems as a result of their alcohol use in terms of their physical health and the impacts the drinking has on their lives and their families,’’ Mrs Wright said.

‘‘We get a lot of referrals from teachers who might have noticed a kid’s grades are slipping, he’s less attentive on a Monday, his behaviour’s become quite erratic, or they’ve heard from other kids in the schoolyard that he’s drinking. Some of the 12 and 13-year-olds are still engaged with their families but may have behavioural issues like ADHD (attention deficit hyperactive disorder) and may be self-medicating by smoking cannabis.’’

Today’s ANCD report will argue that alcohol and substance abuse is less likely among young people whose parents actively disapprove of alcohol use.

‘‘Drug and alcohol use by young people has become normalised and is often seen as a rite of passage to adulthood,’’ ANCD chairman Dr John Herron said.

The report estimates that at least 451,000 Australian children are at risk of exposure to binge drinking by an adult.

One of the report’s authors, Dr Sally Frye, said a family environment where children were not exposed to alcohol was less likely to lead to binge drinking habits than one where parents try to gradually introduce their children to alcohol.

The report warns that siblings of substance users had a ‘‘significant’’ need for support, given evidence that sibling drug use may increase the likelihood of initial use by younger siblings.
‘‘There appear to be a number of gaps in the provision of services to family members, such as the delivery of services to siblings of substance users,’’ the report says. Mrs Wright said young people from migrant and refugee backgrounds were also a concern.

‘‘We’re starting to see more young people from African communities and alcohol is the main issue. It’s about wanting to fit into our way of living because alcohol in their own country was not so readily available and here it’s everywhere and not that expensive,’’ she said.

This month marks the 10th anniversary of the Fitzroy-based Youth Substance Abuse Service, which has helped 10,000 young people through residential rehabilitation, day centres, detoxification and counselling.

Mrs Wright said: ‘‘For some young people the turning point may be a job or they may go through counselling and detox and are reunited with their family. I truly believe if we weren’t there to intervene, then many of them may not be alive.’’