Parents - Reach Out To Your Teenage Children

If you would like to see your kids stay drug free, then take this pledge:

I Will Talk to My Teen About Drugs: Only a third of parents talk to their teens about the risks of using drugs and alcohol,
despite research showing that kids are less likely to use if parents have these conversations.

I Will Set Clear “No-Drug” Rules: Telling your teen that drugs and alcohol are not allowed—and outlining the consequences
for breaking the rules—are important steps to keeping your child drug-free.

I Will Be More Involved: Teens whose parents are involved in their lives are less likely to use illicit drugs or alcohol, or to be
involved in other risky behaviors. Talk to other parents about their rules and level of involvement, too.

I Will Ask the Right Questions: Know what your children are doing when they are away from you, where they go and who
their friends are. Know what they do on and offl ine. And monitor digital activities, too, such as Internet usage, text messaging
and social networking sites.

I Will Stay on Top of Emerging Drug Threats: Keep up with what new drug trends teens might be into, such as using
prescription drugs to get high. Track quantities of medications in your own home; dispose of old pills safely and properly, and
ask others, such as family members, to do the same.


Many parents don’t believe there is a generation disconnect between
them and their teen.) How much do parents really know about their teen’s world?
Especially as teens adopt new technologies so quickly?

Teens may be a hard study, but knowing more about their world and the infl uences
around them will help you connect better with your teen.
Research shows that parental monitoring is effective in reducing risky behaviors
among teens. In fact, teens who are not regularly monitored by their parents are
four times more likely to use illicit drugs.1 And while 80% of parents believe that
alcohol and marijuana are not available at the parties their teens attend, 50% of
teen partygoers attend parties where alcohol, drugs or both are available.2


These tasks take you a step closer to bridging the generation gap with your teen. To learn more about how parents like you are
connecting better with their teens, try these Action Items and report back at www.TheAntiDrug.com/ParentChronicles:
• Pick up your teen’s mp3 player and go to the “Top 25 Most Played” section. Listen for references to alcohol, drugs or
other risky behaviors. Then talk with your teen about what you heard.
• Visit social networking sites like MySpace.com, and browse the profi les of teens your child’s age to see what they say,
what their interests are and what they are doing online.
• Can you name your teen’s favorite TV show? Watch it with him or her and discuss story lines.
• Go to a video sharing Web site and type in “smoking weed.” Watch some of the videos. Did you know that your teen
might be exposed to these images?