Strict Rules by Parents Can Prevent Teen Drinking

Teenage binge thinking is a major contributor to underage or college DUI. Teenagers may have a much lower capacity to alcohol, and when they drink large quantities of alcohol, may be much more likely to be arrested for DUI, or cause an accident. However, parents can play a big role in helping reduce the risk of teen DUI by setting strict rules against binge drinking.

According to a study by Australian researchers, teen binge drinking rates dropped by approximately 25%, when parents established strong rules against alcohol use by adolescents. The research team conducted a study in which they encouraged parents of secondary school children to avoid giving their children alcohol, and to discourage alcohol use.

The researchers found that binge drinking rates when the teenagers were 14 years old, dropped by 25% in the 12 schools where the study was conducted. The results of the study were published in the Journal of Adolescent Health.

In California, being arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol when you are an underage drinker can have serious consequences. In fact, a teenage DUI can look even worse on your record than an adult DUI, because as a person below the age of 21, you are prohibited from driving with any amount of alcohol in your system.

That means that the minimum blood-alcohol concentration rule of .08% does not apply to you. You can be arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol, and may have all the resulting penalties levied against you, even if you are driving under the influence with just .01% of alcohol in your system.