Alcohol and Children: Do They Mix?

Alcohol is a controversial subject. Should you be drinking or not? How much? How often? But even more controversial is the following question.

Should you be drinking with children?

At the risk of being crucified, let me wade into this topic. Allow me to start by saying that no amount of alcohol is good for you. Period.

There are plenty of people who drink moderate amounts and are perfectly fine. I have no quarrel.

But drinking with children is more complex. It is a parenting style mixed with the virtue or vice of alcohol.

One school of thought seems to suggest that if you normalize drinking by having some with your children, they won’t go overboard behind your back.

Another school suggests that parental opprobrium is enough to prevent children from drinking.

Both work.

I am old enough to know that in families where drinking was taboo, no one drank. Then, as the taboo weakened and others started drinking, it became the norm.

But the taboo worked till it worked.

In other cases, you hear of stories of parents drinking with their children, being moderate while doing so. Europe is one such example.

A glass of wine with dinner, is not frowned upon by most.

Here is the bit that will crucify me.

I have changed my understanding of alcohol from moderate amounts being fine, to no amount being fine. This is after carefully researching and reading and forming an opinion. I was shocked by what I learnt.

In essence, alcohol damages the gut and the brain.

Which brings me to how you would want to bring up your children.

With or without?

Without trying to out parent another parent, try and make it not normal to drink. People will drink anyways. Being a friend and drinking with them does not make things better.

If teaching them how to drink is your preferred method, so be it. It will leave you open to the question of why you are drinking, in that case.

What ever you choose, always caution them about the harm that alcohol does.

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