The state Liquor Control Board yesterday released its “Report on Underage and High-Risk Drinking”, an analysis of survey data from students in the sixth, eighth, tenth, and 12th grades. It shows alcohol use on the decline in Pennsylvania, from 43.9 to 43.3 percent. One of the big takeaways: parents have a tremendous influence on their children’s attitudes about drinking.
One out of four underage drinkers get their alcohol from the parents and one out of five get it from other kids’ parents. Students from homes where there are clear rules about alcohol use drink forty percent less than alcohol than families with less stringent rules, and more than eighty percent say mom and dad would disapprove if they knew they were drinking.
The report covers survey results from 2017. It says 43.4 percent of students in Indiana County have tried alcohol in their lifetime. Neighboring Armstrong has the highest percentage of student drinkers in the state, at 56.6 percent. 48.1 percent of Jefferson County students, 46.8 percent of Clearfield County students, 41.9 percent of Cambria County students, and 39.9 percent of Westmoreland County students have tried alcohol in their lifetime.
Other Indiana County trends in the report include a drop in the percentage of students who would be willing to try alcohol. In 2015, the figure was 31.5 percent. In 2017, it was 24.8.
24.3 percent of Indiana County students got their alcohol from their parents.
HERE IS THE LINK TO THE REPORT:
https://www.lcb.pa.gov/About-Us/News-and-Reports/Documents/002552.pdf
