Change Your Impact

What changes an environment into something better? Information, education, knowledge! The following information is for those who want to know, and those who need to know. It is the coalition’s hope that this information will assist your decisions about youth drinking in Richland County and how you, as an adult, can impact them.

Alcohol is a depressant and over time, the more alcohol you consume, the more you may be impacted by depression. According to http://www.drugfreeworld.org, “Although classified as a depressant, the amount of alcohol consumed determines the type of effect. Most people drink for the stimulant effect, such as a beer or glass of wine taken to “loosen up.” But if a person consumes more than the body can handle, they then experience alcohol's depressant effect.” “This means it slows the function of the central nervous system. Alcohol actually blocks some of the messages trying to get to the brain. This alters a person's perceptions, emotions, movement, vision, and hearing,” http://m.kidshealth.org.

Great definition, right, but what does that mean for our youth? Well, here are some county based numbers from the Montana Prevention Needs Assessment student survey from 2016, that are interesting.**

Of the students surveyed in Richland County…..

18.8% say that they have contemplated suicide in the last year.**

27.1% of youth who reported they drank got it from home WITH parental permission.**

26.2% of youth who reported they drank got it from home WITHOUT parental permission.**

These numbers show how much parents play a role in youth drinking. Use your influence by understanding community numbers on youth alcohol use.

You can find the full report at http://dphhs.mt.gov for additional data.

Challenge yourself to Talk It UP & Lock It Up. Talk to youth about what this information means to you and take precautions by counting and locking up your alcohol. It is that simple to make positive impacts on Richland County youth! Send your comments to the Editor to further this conversation.

Next time: Change Your Impact Series, Part 4, Talk It Up, Lock It Up.