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Alcohol Abuse Prevention Programs

Understanding the effects and consequences of drinking alcohol helps teenagers make better decisions and prevents them from engaging in unsafe behaviors. National Night Out and D.A.R.E. help school students understand and respect police officers. Bears Against Drugs is an alcohol abuse prevention program that may be sponsored by nonprofits or churches. Alcohol abuse prevention programs help keep students alcohol-free.

  1. Too Smart to Start

    • Too Smart to Start is a U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, or SAMHSA, initiative to prevent teenagers and young children from drinking alcohol. SAMHSA compiles databases of statistics about underage drinking. The most significant finding regarding early-onset underage drinking is that one or both parents know the child is drinking; some parents even introduce teenagers to their first drink. SAMHSA holds parents responsible for their kids' underage drinking.

      SAMHSA organizes annual National Night Out meetings across the U.S. to remind school-age kids of the dangers of underage drinking. The SAMHSA web page has all the information parents or kids need to know about alternatives to underage drinking. The Too Smart to Start web page teaches the effects of drinking alcohol and the consequences, and it features games, puzzles and quizzes that depict the effects of alcohol on the child's body and behavior.

    D.A.R.E.

    • Drug Abuse Resistance Education, or D.A.R.E., benefits millions of school children in 75 percent of classrooms in the United States. In fact, in more than 43 countries around the world, D.A.R.E. police officers teach children to avoid alcohol, drugs, gangs and violence. The police officer teaches lessons in resisting peer pressure and the value of constructive behavior free of alcohol and violence.

      D.A.R.E. is also a nonprofit organization that supports police officers, develops and evaluates D.A.R.E. lessons, provides officer training and educational materials, and creates national awareness. D.A.R.E. police officers are qualified to answer students' questions about alcohol and crime. The D.A.R.E. officers spend at least 80 hours in child development, classroom management and teaching technique classes. D.A.R.E. gives children the ability to recognize subtle and overt pressures that lead them to lie, try alcohol and illegal activities, and show interest in gangs. D.A.R.E. helps young people understand the role of the police and opens communication. The D.A.R.E. police officers also investigate alcohol and drug abuse, child abuse and all gang activity.

    BAD

    • Bears Against Drugs, or BAD, is for kindergarten through 12th grade students and may be sponsored by schools, local nonprofits or churches. The BAD program educates children about strangers, respect for self and others, discipline and the importance of graduation from high school. BAD teaches about seat belts, air bags and drinking and driving. It helps parents recognize the signs of substance abuse.

      BAD gives coloring books to young students; shoe strings, IDs and rulers to older students; and bear bumper stickers to parents to remind children and parents not to abuse alcohol.

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