One of the most important problems of our time is child alcoholism. In our country, this terrible phenomenon developed in the post-Soviet period, immediately after the collapse of the USSR. In the Union, the use of alcohol was condemned and considered shameful. When the state collapsed, alcohol began to be sold freely, and the number of people who drink increased significantly. Alcoholic beverages are highly addictive, and only a few can then overcome themselves and refuse to use them. According to statistics on child alcoholism, at present, most people are faced with this problem already at the age of 10-12. The disease is developing rapidly, and this will soon lead to irreversible consequences if nothing is done.
Sources of the problem
People who are intoxicated are inadequate. The main enemy for teenagers is the weakening of self-control. The body suffers greatly from this, sooner or later this situation will lead to serious consequences. It is worth noting a terrible thing: most violent offenses are committed under the influence of alcohol.
Teenagers often commitcrimes for the purchase of alcoholic beverages. Statistics say that about half of all crimes committed by children were aimed at obtaining money to buy alcohol. Due to the influence of alcohol, the overall crime rate in the country is on the rise. Teenagers join bad companies, and become easy prey for maniacs and murderers. As for the causes of child alcoholism, there are a lot of them. We will highlight the main ones and take a closer look at each.
Family
Each of us is familiar with the situation when adults sit at the table, celebrate a holiday and, accordingly, drink. Even such minor moments affect the child's psyche, so you need to be careful. It is better not to let the kids to the general feast, you can set a separate small table. Some families pour a few grams of wine or vodka, offering the child a taste. It can also affect the mind, the child will think that if there is a drink, it means a holiday.
Of course, not all families encourage such behavior, they pour juice or lemonade for children. However, consciousness is arranged in such a way that the child feels opposition to the world of adults. Further, children will strive to imitate their parents, so there are gatherings with alcohol in the company of friends. The problem of child alcoholism appears as a result of the fact that parents cannot explain why alcohol is harmful. At the same time, they drink themselves, and the child notices everything.
Street, friends, companies
As you know, guys are always in authority on the street,who are different and do what they want. Every teenager strives to imitate an independent leader, so they will not refuse the offer to drink beer or wine in the company. Childhood alcoholism is a terrible phenomenon. Gatherings will not end at once, they will take place constantly. Kids feel important and cool because they can drink without asking anyone's permission.
The street shapes the worldview of teenagers. Children's alcoholism, drug addiction are born here. Teenagers are looking for something to do, and forbidden fruit is sweet. Parents need to carefully monitor the life of the child, protect him from the influence of bad companies.
Heredity
Pregnant women drinking beer are not uncommon these days. Then children are born with congenital pathologies or chronic problems. If the child was conceived by parents in a state of intoxication or the girl abused alcoholic beverages during the gestation of the fetus, then he will have a tendency to alcohol.
Pediatricians detect pathology in childhood, and most often the child starts drinking early. Children's alcoholism is a terrible thing, parents should spend all their strength on protecting their child from this phenomenon.
Dependence problems
Adult and child drinking are two different things. The child cannot control the amount of alcohol they drink. On the contrary, among friends it will be a feat if he gets drunk to the point of unconsciousness. Such situations often end with hospitalization in intensive care. If there is a strongtoxicity, possibly fatal. Beer alcoholism is the most common among children. This is due to the cheapness of the drink compared to real cognac or vodka.
Child consumes beer every day. At some point, this becomes not enough, and the dose of the drink increases. Sooner or later, children develop problems with the liver and other internal organs. Experts also distinguish a congenital type of child alcoholism. This is very scary, because literally from birth the child expresses an addiction to alcohol. The baby is naughty and cries until he gets what he wants.
Effect on the body of children
Alcohol is harmful for adult consumption, what can we say about a child. Consider the factors that alcohol affects:
- the internal systems of the body cease to interact normally;
- there are problems with digestion, digestive tract;
- there is a gradual destruction of brain cells;
- stop the development of intellectual abilities, memory deteriorates significantly, the development of logic is inhibited;
- Glucose levels decrease, blood pressure rises, body temperature rises.
Delirium and convulsions are the most common symptoms. Most often they attack during sleep, the danger is that a person may fall into a coma.
Periods of addiction of children to alcoholic beverages
It is worth noting that medical experts identify severalage periods. Consider each of them in more detail:
- Early childhood. This is an unconscious attraction, the child begins to get used to alcohol in the womb, and a problem develops during breastfeeding. When a baby is born, physical and mental anomalies can be detected.
- Preschool time. Here, external factors, such as family or friends, already lead to addiction. The irresponsible attitude of parents to the child, the voluntary acceptance of the fact that the baby drinks, all this leads to alcoholism. Some families believe that a little alcohol is even he althy, resulting in an increase in the number of alcohol poisoning and deaths.
- Teenager. This age is considered the most dangerous, because at such a time a person is influenced by the opinions and behavior of those around him. Unsuccessful first love, a quarrel with a best friend can negatively affect the psyche, and a teenager will kiss the bottle. The task of adults during this period is to closely monitor the child, not to allow him to communicate with bad people, to take control of the situation. After the transitional age, the teenager is aware of everything himself.
Why is alcohol so popular?
The development of addiction to alcohol appears, among other things, due to the availability of strong drinks. A child can buy an alcoholic drink in any shop. There is a law that prohibits retail sale to persons under the age of 18. However, many entrepreneurs continue to break the law for profit. Many are familiar with the situation when sever alteenagers stand near the stall, buy chips, crackers and a can of beer or energy drinks, which contain ethyl alcohol. The child does not have a sense of self-control, and this is the worst thing. Crowds of children are taken to intensive care due to severe intoxication.
The popularity of alcohol is also based on widespread advertising. On TV you can see a lot of commercials where drinks are presented in the best light. Beer is especially common, and adolescent addiction to alcohol begins with it.
Features of child drug addiction and alcoholism
The child's body is rather weak, and therefore even infrequent regular consumption of alcoholic beverages leads to serious problems. Mental disorders are observed in children, behavior changes, conflicts and quarrels with parents appear. The brain starts to work worse, psychopathy develops. A feature of child alcoholism is the manifestation of apathy towards everything. The child closes in on himself, does not show initiative, his intellectual abilities are deteriorating, which leads to problems with academic performance.
The danger is also the speed of development of addiction. In a child, it occurs instantly, attacking the not yet formed internal organs and systems. Alcohol interferes with the development of the body, which leads to the destructive effects of ethyl alcohol. The child suffers from severe headaches that subside only during intoxication, so he gets drunk more often. The consequences of childhood teenage alcoholism are terrifying. This problem cannot bebe left unattended as it could engulf the whole world.
Therapy
Specialists in the field of medicine and psychology note that the likelihood of a cure exists only if the parents recognize the problem and are willing to fight it. In all other cases, any therapy will be powerless. Understanding moms and dads need to start small: just communicate with the child, gradually delving into the essence of the problems. Conversations and communication will help to establish contact with the child, and then you can try to push him to understand that alcoholism needs to be treated. It is very difficult to do this, so the help of narcologists and psychologists is needed.
Treatment of child alcoholism involves, first of all, changes in the mind and thinking of the child. It is very important to occupy the child with a new business, not necessarily school subjects. Parents need to understand what the baby wants and give it to him. If he becomes interested in photography, it is better to spend money on good equipment once than to be treated for alcoholism all his life later. The child will constantly need support, so mom and dad should spend more time with him. For the baby, this is extremely important, and parents should not neglect such advice.
Success Factors
Early diagnosis is the first step towards recovery from childhood alcoholism. The sooner parents realize that there is a problem, the more successful rehabilitation therapy will be. Don't underestimate inpatient care. In many situations, in addition to psychological disorders, children have pathologies of internal organs. Complex therapy in this situation is the best option
A child is sometimes terribly afraid that his peers will find out about his illness and stop communicating with him. For their part, parents need to promise that the baby will move to another school, and if necessary, change the city.
Prevention of child alcoholism
In this context, the task of adults comes down to one thing - to prevent the emergence of alcohol addiction by all means. This is facilitated by frequent preventive conversations aimed at explaining the negative effects of alcohol. Moreover, parents should not shift this kind of responsibility onto teachers.
You should spend more time with your child, communicate with him, encourage sports, passion for art, reading, etc. Thus, the child develops a goal, a desire to achieve something. Ideally, society should also make efforts to eliminate the problem of alcohol dependence. You can start with the most obvious - a ban on advertising of alcoholic beverages. Vivid commercials presenting alcohol as an affordable good only deforms the psyche of a child who immediately wants to try the forbidden liquid.
Certain results can only be achieved through joint efforts. Continuous work in this direction will reduce the number of children suffering from alcohol addiction.
