The Surgeon General has issued a new “call to action” concerning underage drinking. The goals of the Call to Action include:

Fostering changes in society that facilitate healthy adolescent development and that help prevent and reduce underage drinking;

Engaging parents, schools, communities, all levels of government, all social systems that interface with youth, and youth themselves, in a coordinated national effort to prevent and reduce underage drinking and its consequences;

Promoting an understanding of underage alcohol consumption in the context of human development and maturation that takes into account individual adolescent characteristics as well as environmental, ethnic, cultural, and gender differences;

Conducting additional research on adolescent alcohol use and its relationship to development;

Working to improve public health surveillance on underage drinking and on population-based risk factors for this behavior; and

Working to ensure that policies at all levels are consistent with the national goal of preventing and reducing underage alcohol consumption.

CTCADA offers both adolescent intervention and treatment programs. Education, individual counseling, family therapy, group counseling, and referral to other resources are all part of a comprehensive effort to prevent or intervene in youth alcohol and drug abuse. Call us at 254-690-4455!