14

It is important to teach the truths about the negative effects of alcohol to the body, the mind and the social life as soon as the child shows curiosity about alochol. It will set a precedent to understand why is important to use moderation with alcoholic beverages drinking, and will help to prevent underage drinking.

I've let my daughters try them as young as 14. I want them to understand that it's no big deal. The way I see it if it becomes the forbidden fruit they will get ahold of it on their own without my guidance and not understand it's potential. If they understand it early they will know what it really is and not be victimized by it when they find themselves in that atmosphere.

Teach, as early as possible, cause younger and younger children are drinking without supervision. What's most important, a child should be taught about peer pressure and never forbidden to drink cause it will only make Him/Her more prone to rebel. As for to give, I'd say small amounts of good quality alcohol in like 13-15. If the child tastes good quality alcohol in the beginning He/She can be less prone to drink big amounts of the cheap crap His/Her school "friends" can afford.

research shows the younger someone is when they start drinking the more likely they are to become an alcoholic. in some countries it's illegal to give children alcohol. the only way to drink responsibly is to not drink at all. as someone said, you can't forbid it but you can let them know what you expect, set a good example and not drink yourself, not provide it for them and not protect them from the consequences of their choices.

Here in the states it is illegal to teach a child to drink... they must be 21 and then they are adults.

In the UK youngsters have to be 18 to drink legally..although many clubs/bars now won't accept them until they are 21 years old :D A parent may discuss alcohol consumption with their child..but, they should never *teach* them how to drink at any age..

As early as they can understand it. My parents taught me about alcohol early on, I was provided with the facts, and I was allowed to sample different kinds of beer and wine. I now have what I think it a very healthy attitude towards alcohol. I am one of the few teens I know who does not go out to gatherings and get intoxicated frequently.

The law in the UK allows a child to drink alcohol at the age of 5 in the company of their parents at home. Isn't this disgusting? Shows why there is so much stupidity when it comes to the scumbag factor.

When theyre about sixteen or seventeen. If you tell them how much is too much and what not, it may be a big help. Would you rather them find out on their own w/ friends?

That would depend of course on where you live, and the emotional maturity of the youths involved. In some cultures people drink younger on average than others, and too some kids are quite mature at 15 while others are still kids at 21. My girls were ready to be treated as full adults by the age of 16 / 17, in regards to drinking my wife and I showed them ( we hoped ), how to consume alcoholic beverages responsibly through example and partaking in a controlled environment. I hope this helped you.

Why would anyone TEACH their child to drink at all? Edit: Okay, I took the question literally so in addition to my first response I will just say...it is my opinion the best way (never mind time) to teach a child to do ANYTHING responsibly is lead by example and be responsible yourself.

Well I don't think we should teach our kids to drink. I think we should encourage them not to drink, but we all know they are going to. So we have to teach them to make good decisions when it comes to drinking. Self-control, no driving, etc. Having said that I don't think that we can demand they never try it or make it something evil that they will avoid. I let my daughter have a wine cooler at 14. She's had wine at special dinners with the family. She's tried a drink of her dad's beer and a sip of my mixed drink. So it's not that I've dished it up for her, but she has had some very limited and minor experience in my care. But we don't drink to excess either. We are good role models when it comes to alcohol consumption.

I don't think it is something you can teach by having them consume alchol. It would be like teaching a child to smoke responsibly or do drugs responsibly. I have two different family members who thought they could do that with their children. One set of parents drank a little too much and thought if they teach their children to drink at home only than it would be ok. Out of 2 sibllings one is sneaking out to drink more. Now the second family had 2 parents who didn't drink because one was a recovering alcohlic. Out of 3 children, one is an alcoholic, another started with alcohol and moved on to drugs (now recovering) and the youngest was wise enough to learn from the other two. The best you can do is set a good example, and cross your fingers. Personaly my husband and I mostly only have about 2 drinks at a family occassion or major holidays. I have alcohol in my home for guest which rarely come and drink so most of it goes bad and gets thrown out. One of my children doesn't really care for alcohol and the one says he loves beer is asleep before the second beer can is barely finished. He's also to cheap to buy beer and doesn't like hard liqour. Rather buy a big mac. Neither were allowed to drink before 18 in my home and only allowed non alcoholic champange at new years before that.

kids learn a lot from friends and lets just say life when growing up,they see the negative but many go through a stage and will go party/clubbing drink and get sick throw up embarrass themselves and finally settle down,some will become party animals and some even drunks,some will be better and some worse for it,some will be crippled and some will die in car accidents(drunk driving)so as not be doom and gloom the answer i think would be at what age should one EDUCATE ones child about alcohol

At birth. Children watch how we behave and decide what they will do. Role modeling is the first step. The we answer questions and teach principles as they develop interest and curiosity.

my parents started at 13 they wanted me prepared for any situation instead of putting their heads in the sand. +5

They will learn by watching you and others drink responsibly or irresponsibly. Do you get drunk? Do you drive after drinking? Do you get violent or abusive while drinking? etc. Are you asking when you can give your child a drink? You should not. Their brains are still developing clear into their teenage years, why would you give them something that kills brain cells?

17 or 18 sounds about the average age for kids to start drinking amongst peers. so right around there would be good to acknowledge alchohol and its effects with your child. Hope this helped. -Demon

Around or before high school. Fact is there is illegal alcohol consumption at most high school parties. This leads to problems as teens over indulge in something they aren't suppose to be allowed to have. My parents let me drink at home whenever I wanted. I've never over-indulged. I rarely drank at parties at all since I didn't feel comfortable being intoxicated in a strange place surrounded by a bunch of people. For teenagers, if it is something they are allowed to do, they are less likely to go to extremes with it. It also helps prevent drinking and driving since they experience it before they can drive alone, preventing them from doing both.

How about teaching them not to drink at all.

how bout teaching them not to drink period.

12

teaching them not to drink would be the prefered method.....when they turn of legal age, that is when you would suggest safe intake.

I was eleven yrs old when my Mam said I could have my first drink of beer! little did she know my uncle had been giving me the last sips out of his pint pot for years!! Lol.... :-/

Any age is a good age to teach responsibility. Allowing drinking is another thing all together. Letting a minor drink is against the law and therefor would be considered irresponsible. That said, my stepmom told my bro and sis probably as early as Jr High that if they were going to drink then they should not ride or drive with anyone else and should call her for a ride home. That seemed like a responsible thing and now that they are adults they still do not drink and drive. Different strokes for different folks I suppose.

Eighty-seven.

Even when they are young, you can discuss it with them without giving them any. They will also learn by watching you. If you are responsible with your drinking or if you drink all the time, that can influence them as well. The hope is that they won't drink until they are 21. Unfortunately, most kids at least try it when they are in their teens. Parents really need to stress the dangers of drinking and driving, dangers of drinking too much, etc. with them as young adults/teens.

PhileoTruth, I am impressed with this question - it is one of the more thought-provoking ones I have seen here (and this place brims with thought-provoking questions). Now I am not a parent, and I admit that I have lived a sheltered life. My thought on the matter is that it's important that kids understand what alcohol is as early as possible. Not what it tastes like, not that grandpa keeps a flask of it on his person day and night - what it is. It is like a fire or a car. It is something that needs to be understood before it is used. It is something that you must be careful with and be in control of. If you're not prepared to understand it, it can take a wild turn and hurt you. I'll expose my kids to it at special events like Thanksgiving and Christmas. My family has always allowed teenagers to "have a taste" of wine at Thanksgiving (a sip for those younger, and a couple swallows-worth in a glass for those older). I remember when I had my first sip, I had to run to the bathroom to spit it out (and I've never liked white wines since). We all know people close to us in our past who have misused alcohol, or have been affected by someone who was. I'll tell my kids these stories. When they go to high school, I'd talk to a friend who has children who has gone through the school. I'd ask if alcohol is a problem there. And I'll be an active parent and get to know some of my kid's friends' parents. And when they graduate, I'll talk to them about life after high school. If they go to college, I'll talk to them about how kids can be swept up by new things they don't understand. I'll remind them of the fire and the car. And I'll tell them to have fun, but be smart, and to choose their friends wisely. And when I celebrate their 21st with them, I'll buy them a drink.

Most binge drinking is a peer, learned behavior. most kids, when young, will not like the hops in beer, or dry wines both are an acquired taste for most people. My first drunk(light buzz) was when I was about 10 when my dad came home from a 8 week trip overseas, my mother poured a small glass of champaign for each of the 5 older kids (of 7) none of my siblings got past the first sip, it was white and had bubbles BUT it was not 7Up. I kinda liked it, and killed mine and the other 4 glasses. I was in 6th grade at that time and was about 110 lbs. I had had sips of beer from the time I was 3,but the beer was Olympia and the only beer that I know with less hops in it is Coors Light and that had not yet beer distributed(or likely yet first brewed). So the Oly was not bitter enough to put me off the flavor like real/serious beer would have.I had been eating unsweetened KoolAid from the time I was 5. i liked sour. My folks drank Jim Beam/7's most of the time, which I got sips of. in high school, I tapped my first keg at 15 and started cutting people off when I was 17(if you had puked twice, it is a waste of good beer to pour you more). My drink for a night when I was 16 when I had a choice was Taylors New York State Cream Sherry while my brother drank a 6 of Bud. In my catholic high school, drinking was a competitive sport. I learned to compete. I later learned to cheat, by my 20's if I was going to binge drink competitively I would drop 2 or 3 hits of microDot acid. I could then drink people serially under the table, great fun. I gave up heavy drinking when I was about 28 after a job where I was exposed to MethelEthelKetone and liver began to pretend to be a rib. still drank, just not to real excess. binge drinking was something that I learned from the crowd with which I tried to gain status, but mostly I learned when to quit and to do the math of what a given amount of ETOH would do to my blood ETOH. In those days the limit was .15 in my state. And I rode a bicycle, if I was too drunk to ride I needed that bike to walk. The moral here is to see what the friends do. Cause that is what and how the kids will drink, if they drink.

My Partner's son (and the child of my heart) had a good example of the WRONG behaviors in his Father. His dad is one of those who becomes violent when drunk and since it doesn't take much (a few beers) to get the man drunk, it's a short trip to stupidity. WE gave him the other example as he grew up, of not over drinking to a point of becoming drunk, and discussing acceptable enjoyment of beer, wine, or other drinks. We are blessed in that number one, he did NOT want to emulate his father's behaviors, (lots of DUI'S) and two, the lad has a very strong aversion to doing things that can result in him feeling pain, sickness, discomfort where such can easily be avoided. I did allow him to taste a small sip of wine, occasionally when he was 16+...one sip of mine. As a young man now of 21 (22 next month on Mischief night lol) he usually limits himself to one drink or one beer and is happy with that.

I started dipping my daughter's pacifier in liqueur before she was a year old. She grew up without the fascination of the forbidden about alcohol. Both my daughters were allowed to have a little wine with dinner from age 12, and even an occasional sip of my whisky if they asked. Both of them have grown up to be mature and responsible about drinking. I didn't want them to sneak and hide it from me or their mothers. My mother was a teetotaller and an anti-alcohol fanatic. Consequently, when I turned 21, I began to drink, and I didn't know how. Many is the time I had to crawl to the toilet to throw up for the 5th time. I had to learn how to drink, after I was adult, with no guidance of any kind. So teaching a child how to drink, and how not to, is a good idea, and it's sound parenting.

I would say to them, "it really would be better to not drink it at all, and wouldnt encourage it in any way but if they choose to, then I would rather they did it around me and I would say two pints is plenty at 15. 4 is plenty for anyone, but its poison! simple as that, it calms you for about 30min if you are anxious and then the anxiety raises after awhile then you need another, til it gets out of control, thus creating addiction, trust me Ive there for a sort while.

I think 15 would be appropriate, if only not to be socially retarded. I think abstaining would be ideal, but with social pressure, that can be difficult. My parents told me nothing about drinking, so when I started to see it around me when I was 15, I felt like I was missing something everyone else knew.

At age 15.