THE MAJORITY OF children who drink alcohol source it from their parents or home, according to a new study on schoolchildren’s behaviour.
More than six in 10 children (64%) surveyed said they had never had an alcoholic drink, an increase of 6% since a similar survey was carried out in 2014.
Of those children who reported ever having had alcohol, 54% received alcohol from a parent, guardian or sibling or reported taking alcohol from the family home, with a further 30% sourcing it from friends.
Overall, 17% of children reported having been ‘really drunk’ (down from 21% in 2014) and 6% of children reported being drunk in the last 30 days (10% in 2014).
The findings are included in the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) Ireland 2018 study which will be launched by Minister for Health Simon Harris and Minister for Health Promotion Catherine Byrne later today.
More than 15,500 children aged 8-18 years across a representative sample of 255 primary and post-primary schools in Ireland took part in the survey.
The Irish study, wish was commissioned by the Department of Health and carried out by the Health Promotion Research Centre at NUI Galway, is part of international research being done across Europe and North America.
The HBSC study takes place every four years, and this is the sixth time that Ireland has taken part.
Source: Órla Ryan, The Journal, 9th January 2020
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