A Sip as a Kid, Alcohol Problems as an Adult?

Introducing children to alcohol by way of their parents allowing them sips or tasters of their own drinks is typically viewed as the presiding method used in European countries.

Published in the journal Psychological Medicine, a new investigation has aimed to explore the impact of the so-called ‘European model' on a child’s drinking habits. It concluded that children whose parents give them sips of alcoholic drinks are more likely to be drinking full serves by the time they reach the age of 15 or 16. However, the study also found that the same children were less likely to binge drink compared with those who managed to acquire alcohol from other sources, for example older friends or siblings.

Nonetheless, Julia Stafford from the McCusker Centre for Action on Alcohol and Youth (MCAAY) has warned parents against adopting the opinion that giving their children alcohol protects them from binge drinking. She notes that any amount of alcohol consumed by those under the age of 18 is harmful because the brain is still developing.

Click here to read the full story on The Guardian’s website.