Telling drug stories to your kids a bad idea, study shows

[poledriver]

Telling drug stories to your kids a bad idea, study shows

A new study says that you shouldn't tell your kids about your past drug use.

Researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign found that kids' views on drugs soften when parents say they've done them.

The study looked at 253 Hispanic and 308 white children in grades six to eight.

Researchers asked about conversations they've had with their parents about cigarettes, alcohol and marijuana, said HealthDay.

About 80 percent of parents told their kids they had dabbled in drugs, said Live Science.

Although previous research has shown that talking to your kids about your own experiences deters them from doing the same, this study showed the opposite.

"Parents may want to reconsider whether they should talk to their kids about times when they used substances in the past and not volunteer such information, said lead researcher Jennifer A. Kam, in a statement.

"Of course, it is important to remember this study is one of the first to examine the associations between parents' references to their own past substance use and their adolescent children's subsequent perceptions and behaviors."

The moral of the story: lie to your kids.

The findings were published in the journal Human Communication Research.

http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/...g-drug-stories-your-kids-bad-idea-study-shows

 

[slimvictor]

Although previous research has shown that talking to your kids about your own experiences deters them from doing the same, this study showed the opposite.

"Parents may want to reconsider whether they should talk to their kids about times when they used substances in the past and not volunteer such information, said lead researcher Jennifer A. Kam, in a statement.

Talking honestly to your kids about drugs is impossible due to the sick drug laws that punish people for seeking happiness and relief in socially unacceptable ways.

But the problem with this article is the assumption - who knows if the kids who try drugs based on their parents' stories actually end up moderating their relationship with drugs, and controlling their drug use, and using drugs responsibly?

The moral of the story: lie to your kids.

This is true, because your kids may rat you out in DARE/brainwashing programs in school without realizing the extent of the problem they may cause.
But assuming that the best approach to talking to kids about drugs is to lie, as in the article - this is too big a leap based on a slanted perspective due to unquestioned assumption that drug use is bad. Period.

We don't want kids using drugs, but if having honest parents and exploring a bit in their youth helps them control their drug use when they are adults and avoid, say, drinking or using meth excessively (bingeing), as some evidence seems to suggest, then it may save lives.

 

[Captain.Heroin]

My parents never used drugs... so I don't know what this study really means. 8(

 

[Venrak]

My dad smoked pot ever since i was born and kept it from me until he found out I was smoking, then had a discussion with me about it.

Point is, I started smoking without knowing my parents ever used drugs.

 

[JD55]

My parents never used drugs... so I don't know what this study really means. 8(

I guess it just means we're some bad apples bro

 

[AlphaMethylPhenyl]

I admit it was worse for me to learn that my dad smoked pot

 

[Limitbreaker]

My parents both used drugs, been addicted, been to using intravenously, dad's dead due to drugs.

Author assumption is that if your view's softer on drugs, then it's a bad thing. No need to say it's wrong. It's unrealistic.

Oppositely to Captain.Heroin, I can't say what my life would have been if my mother lied to me about drugs, because she's always been honest to me. And I believe I'd have tried drugs if I didn't know truth about my parents anyway.

 

[poledriver]

When honesty is NOT the best policy: How teens are more likely to try drugs if they know their parents once did too

Parents should not tell children about their past drug use, according to a new study.
Researchers from the University of Illinois found that teenagers were less likely to view drugs and alcohol as a bad thing if they knew about their parents' indiscretions.
However those who were simply educated on the dangers of substance abuse were more likely to embrace anti-drug attitudes.

Explaining how parents' shared experiences might influence children, Jennifer Kam, the study's co-author, said: 'Kids might be interpreting it as 'Mom and Dad used, and they're still here.''
'Those children might think that their parents won't disapprove too much if they also give illicit drugs a try.'
Findings were based on surveys filled out by 561 school pupils in the Illinois area, aged 11 to 14 and of European and Latin descent.

The researchers selected these ethnic groups because they have the highest rates of alcohol and marijuana use in the eighth grade.
Included in the surveys were questions about their attitudes toward drugs, their experiences with them, and what kinds of messages their parents had given them.
They found when parents did share their own experiences, even when they were very negative ones, it undermined the point they were trying to make.
'The implication is that if the parents used drugs and turned out OK then the teen will, too'
Ms Kam added: 'Parents may want to reconsider whether they should talk to their kids about times when they used substances in the past and not volunteer such information.

cont-


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/a...drugs-know-parents-did-too.html#ixzz2LwIK4tFo

 

[szuko000]

It really depends. If the kid is doing well in school and respects authority figures both governmental and parental then I'd allow them to smoke weed and maybe tell them of my HS experience. Would I tell them it's ok no because doing drugs generally is not good.

I figure I'll let my kids smoke weed on occasion If they are responsible if not then no.

Will I tell them I use to shoot dope and smoke crack for 2 years probably not until they have gotten old enough. I mean maybe it will serve as a warning but I hope to have my life figured out by then (20+ years from now)