Resources

Links

General
Youth
Parents
Teachers
Community Leaders

General

SAMHSA's National Clearinghouse for Drug and Alcohol Information (NCADI) provides current information and materials for parents, teachers, youth, and communications and health professionals about preventing alcohol, tobacco, and drug use by young people.

The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) funds more than 90 percent of the alcohol abuse and addiction (alcoholism) research in the United States. This research, both biomedical and behavioral, addresses the causes, consequences, treatment, and prevention of alcoholism and alcohol-related problems.

NIAAA publishes Alcohol Alerts, bulletins that disseminate findings of the research. Alcohol Alert No. 59, Underage Drinking: A Major Public Health Challenge, contains information on topics including Injury and Social Consequences; Alcohol's Effects on the Brain; and Policy and Community Strategies.

Leadership to Keep Children Alcohol Free, a unique coalition of Governors' spouses, Federal agencies, and public and private organizations, is an initiative to prevent the use of alcohol by children ages 9 to 15. It is the only national effort that focuses on alcohol use in this age group. Resources and materials are available at: www.alcoholfreechildren.org. NIAAA is a founder of the Leadership.

The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP), under the Office of Justice Programs in the U.S. Department of Justice, provides grants and contracts to States to help them improve their juvenile justice systems. OJJDP also sponsors the Enforcing the Underage Drinking Laws Training Center, which provides science-based, practical, and effective training and technical assistance methods to States and communities involved in enforcing underage alcohol access and use laws.

The American Medical Association (AMA) has published the following reports relating to underage drinking:

Report 11 of the Council on Scientific Affairs (A-03): Effects of Alcohol on the Brains of Underage Drinkers examines the physiological and medical consequences of drinking by young people, particularly with respect to neurotoxic and harmful cognitive effects. (January 2004)

Brain Damage Risks discusses the AMA Report: Harmful Consequences of Alcohol Use on the Brains of Children, Adolescents, and College Students. (April 2003)

Reducing Underage Drinking: A Collective Responsibility. Fact sheet on the 2003 Institute of Medicine study contains information from national surveys and information on prevention efforts. (September 2003)

Three commercial video/print packages describing the effects of alcohol on the developing brain are available at www.hrmvideo.com. Costs are associated with these products. Their presence on this site does not imply endorsement or recommendation by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), Center for Substance Abuse Prevention (CSAP) or any other HHS agency or employees.

Youth

Tips for Teens on Alcohol - The Truth About Alcohol provides information on the health effects of alcohol use, the legal risks of drinking, and how to detect the signs of drinking problems.

The CoolSpot Web site gives kids facts on underage drinking and effective alternatives to alcohol use.

Parents

Make A Difference: Talk to Your Child About Alcohol is a guide for parents and guardians of young people ages 10 to 14. It describes the problems associated with alcohol use among young people, as well as the way parents can talk with children about these issues.

A Family Guide To Keeping Youth Mentally Healthy and Drug Free offers adults who influence the lives of children ages 7 to 18 —including parents, foster parents, grandparents, extended family members, guardians, and mentors—suggestions for better communication with children, as well as other tips that aid in prevention.

PRIDE Youth Programs, Inc. is a drug prevention resource center that provides links to prevention and parenting organizations, prevention funding sources, and sites to contact policymakers. The Web site's alcohol page contains resources to provide guidance to parents and other adults who are concerned about preventing minors from accessing and consuming alcohol.

National Family Partnership (NFP) offers several tools - a parent's kit, tips for parents, quick tips to prevent drug abuse, and fact sheets on alcohol - to help parents get involved in prevention efforts.

Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) are more than just moms - they're real people - dads, young people, and other concerned individuals who want to stop drunk driving, support the victims of this violent crime, and prevent underage drinking. The MADD Web site has a section for the under 21-age group that includes facts, statistics, and myths about drinking.

Teachers

SAMHSA Model Programs—tested in communities, schools, social service organizations, and workplaces across America—have provided solid proof that they have prevented or reduced substance abuse and other related high-risk behaviors. For effective school-based alcohol prevention programs, go to http://modelprograms.samhsa.gov/ and search using the terms schools and alcohol prevention.

Understanding Alcohol: Investigations into Biology and Behavior is a middle school curriculum supplement, funded by the National Institutes of Health's National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) and Office of Science Education. The curriculum consists of six hands-on inquiry-based lessons that were developed on the basis of the 5E's instructional model for science education. In field-testing, the curriculum has taken 1½ to 4 weeks to teach.

The Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools (OSDFS) administers, coordinates, and recommends policy for improving quality and excellence of programs and activities that are designed to provide financial assistance for drug and violence prevention activities and activities that promote the health and well-being of students in elementary and secondary schools.

NIDA Goes Back to School is a source of free information about drug abuse materials for teachers that includes curricula and other teaching aids specific for elementary and middle-school-age children.

Protecting You/Protecting Me is a 5-year, science-based alcohol use prevention curriculum developed by MADD for grades 1 through 5.

Community Leaders

Too Smart to Start Community Action Kit for Prevention Professionals and Volunteers contains materials designed to help community leaders plan, develop, and support local underage alcohol use prevention initiatives, particularly for 9- to 13-year-olds. The kit includes Too Smart to Start materials and materials developed by others. Each can be used as is or adapted and tailored to meet local needs.

Underage Drinking Prevention - Action Guide and Planner suggests strategies for implementing coordinated prevention activities; identifies themes and issues around which to organize campaigns; and includes relevant statistics, sample letters, press releases, speeches, and other materials to adapt for local campaigns.

Keep Kids Alcohol Free: Strategies for Action describes the public and private application of three science-based prevention models. Informative online "e-sources" that highlight prevention strategies in action are also included.

Preventing Drug Use among Children and Adolescents: A Research-Based Guide for Parents, Educators, and Community Leaders, Second Edition provides science-based conceptual models and research-supported information to enable the development and implementation of effective alcohol and drug abuse prevention programs.