By Chris Volkmann and Michael Langer
Washington State Coalition to Reduce Underage Drinking

The Healthy Youth Survey results released in the past few weeks show a majority of the 200,000 Washington State students surveyed in grades 6, 8, 10 and 12 are saying "no" to alcohol, other drugs and other risky behaviors.

That's great news for parents and drug prevention educators. Unfortunately, there are still too many kids risking their health and futures by drinking alcohol.

About one-fourth of 10th graders and one-third of 12th graders said they had been drunk in the past 30 days. About one in five 10th and 12th graders said they had been drunk at school during the past year. Alcohol is by far the biggest drug problem among Washington's youth, and has taken more young lives than tobacco and illicit drugs combined.

The good news is that even with limited funding, our state, county and school-based prevention programs are working to discourage more kids from drinking. Since 2000, binge drinking is down 42 percent among 8th graders, 15 percent among 10th graders, and 18 percent among 12th graders. This means fewer kids are at risk to fail in school, have unprotected sex, be seriously injured, or develop alcoholism. This is a trend to celebrate - and one the Washington State Coalition to Reduce Underage Drinking (RUaD) wants to see continue.

RUaD, a statewide coalition of 24 agencies, organizations and parent advocates, has been working on strategies to encourage a healthier social environment for children to grow up in. One of RUaD's goals is to reduce the alcohol marketing that kids are exposed to - a problem that's getting worse.

Research by the Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth finds that from 2001 to 2005, the alcohol industry increased its spending on TV ads by 32%, for a total of $4.7 billion. That translates into a 41% increase in the number of ads seen by youth ages 12 to 20.

RUaD is implementing strategies listed in the U. S. Surgeon General's recent call to action on reducing underage drinking, which includes better monitoring of alcohol advertising placement. RUaD also has just launched a statewide education campaign and Web site for parents: www.StartTalkingNow.org. A key goal of the campaign is to educate parents that kids who drink before age 15 are five times more likely to have alcohol problems when they're adults.

Why target adults? Because it is mostly adults, including some parents, who blanket our stores, communities, and sporting events with alcohol ads, who need to stay involved in what their teens are doing, and who are unaware of how early, how often, and how much kids today are drinking. It is also parents who have the greatest influence on their children's decisions about alcohol.

Every day in our country, 7,000 kids under the age of 16 take their first drink. We have a long way to go to create a safe and healthy environment for our youth, but it can be done. Now is the time for parents, educators, and policymakers to call for strong limits on alcohol marketing, and more education about how alcohol harms young minds and bodies. It will take ongoing funding, commitment and work, but our young people, and their futures, are worth it.

Chris Volkmann is a parent representative with RUaD and co-author of From Binge to Blackout. Michael Langer is a state agency representative and chairs RUaD. The Division of Alcohol and Substance Abuse in the Department of Social and Health Services is a member of the coalition.