Daily HealthBeat Tip

What parents don't know

From the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, I'm Ira Dreyfuss with HHS HealthBeat.

Maybe other people's teen-agers drink, smoke or use drugs. But my kid?

Well, maybe. A study indicates there's a lot many parents don't know about what their teens do. Laura Bierut of Washington University found that when she compared what parents thought they knew with what teens reported in separate surveys.

"Parents knew that their kids were using alcohol, cigarettes, and marijuana only about half the time." (Six seconds)

Parents knew even less about harder drugs.

The researchers say parents have to realize the kids won't volunteer to tell them, so parents have to start talking � preferably in junior high. And Bierut says don't ignore your intuition:

"If you think your child is using alcohol, cigarettes or drugs, you're probably right." (five seconds)

The study in Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research was supported by the National Institutes of Health.

Learn more at www.hhs.gov.

HHS HealthBeat is a production of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. I'm Ira Dreyfuss.

Last revised: December 21, 2006

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