Greenville Family Partnership

Teen Drinkers Suffer Nerve Damage in Brain, Study Finds

California researchers who compared the brains of teen drinkers to non-drinkers found that young alcohol users suffered damage to nerve tissues that could cause attention deficits among boys and faulty visual information processing among girls.

NPR reported Jan. 25 that researcher Susan Tapert of the University of California at San Diego and colleagues studied the brains of 12- to 14-year-olds, starting before they began drinking and following them as some began using alcohol. Researchers found that those who binged on alcohol did worse on thinking and memory tests, but that the impairment differed by gender.

Adolescents, whose brains are still developing, are at particular risk from brain damage resulting from alcohol use, the researchers concluded. Taper's research showed that teen drinking negatively affected both the white matter (nerve tissue) and hippocampus region of the brain.

The study appears in the December 2009 issue of the journal Psychology of Addictive Behaviors.

Source: Join Together

THE MISSION OF GREENVILLE FAMILY PARTNERSHIP

TO KEEP KIDS OFF TOBACCO, ALCOHOL, DRUGS AND OTHER HARMFUL SUBSTANCES BY EDUCATING AND PARTNERING WITH FAMILIES AND COMMUNITIES.

Do you have an opinion that you would like to share? Like for instance on underage drinking and drug use; drunk and drugged driving; local gang activity; or the new downtown curfew... If so, we would love to hear your opinion. Tell us about it. Share your opinion and see what others have to say!

But remember the purpose of this Blog is to encourage community discussion on substance abuse related issues in the hopes of enlightenment. And that any submissions containing inflammatory or offensive language, profanity or advertisements will be removed. Thank you for adding your voice to our blog!

Safe from Alcohol, Safe from Drugs, A Safe Social Environment

One of the greatest gifts we can give our kids is a healthy, alcohol and drug free youth.

Greenville Family Partnership (GFP) is a non-profit organization whose mission is to keep kids off tobacco, alcohol and other drugs.  GFP is starting a new program called Safe Homes Parent Network.  

The Safe Homes Parent Network (SHPN) is a parent pledge program that joins parents together to support one another in providing a safer social environment for our youth.  It does not require any extra time, just a commitment to provide an alcohol and drug free environment when hosting youth in your home.  The goal of Safe Homes Parent Network is to link committed parents together through GFP’s website.

Don’t wait until Red Ribbon Week to plan your drug prevention activities! Prevention is a year-round event! Teachers can plan their drug prevention activities early!

For ideas and suggestions on Red Ribbon Week Activities, check out the "Ideas" and "Red Ribbon" sections of the Red Ribbon Store!