NHS reveals underage drinking is still too high

The report found that the number of 11- to 15-year-old smokers has halved since 1996, and that cannabis use has fallen by four per cent since 2001.
 
However, almost 40 per cent of 15-year-olds had drunk in the last week, and the average consumption in a week for all young people who drank was 14.6 units. This is above the medically recommended weekly intake, which is 14 units of alcohol per week for women and 21 for men.
 
Liz Fuller, who headed up the research programme, said the survey suggested that children who came from households where parents consumed large amounts were far more likely to consume higher levels of alcohol themselves. Also, higher alcohol consumption was more prevalent in young people where parents had allowed them to consume alcohol from an early age. Where parents disapproved of children drinking, consumption levels were significantly lower.

"I think there is an issue with the general drinking culture in this country," said Fuller, "but unlike with smoking and drug use, also covered in the survey, there is ambivalence about parents' attitude to alcohol."
 
The survey of 8,000 11- to 15-year-olds was carried out by the National Centre for Social Research (NatCen) and the National Centre for Educational Research (NFER).  The children were surveyed in autumn 2008 about whether they had tried any drugs, drink or cigarettes and how often they consumed these substances.