Campaign Promotes Safe Summer for Teens

Local organizations recently announced the formation of a new network of public health coalitions from across the county aiming to address the problems related to alcohol and other drugs. The new network, called Communities United, also announced its summer campaign to curb underage drinking and related problems. More teenagers start drinking in June and July than in any other months, according to a 2012 report by the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. Health officials estimate that during each of these summer days, more than 11,000 teens on average use alcohol for the first time. During the rest of the year, daily first-time alcohol use runs from 5,000 to 8,000 occurrences a day. “These problems pose real dangers to residents of the county,” said Mario Saucedo, chair of Redlands Common Vision Coalition. “That’s why we decided to work together across the regions of this huge county to promote a safer, healthier way of living.” The focus of Communities United’s first campaign is on curbing underage access to alcohol that typically happens at house parties. Communities United chose the slogan, “Report underage drinking: Saving lives has never been easier” as a focus of its campaign to bolster efforts around social host ordinances throughout the county. Currently, eleven cities and the County of San Bernardino have adopted -- and others are considering -- social host ordinances which make it illegal to provide a place where those under 21 have access to alcohol -- be it a house, apartment, vehicle or hotel room. “Don’t let our kids become painful statistics,” stated Saucedo. “Report underage drinking.” Individual problems related to binge and underage drinking include scholastic problems, personal injury, sexual assault, unintended sex, and unwanted pregnancies. “Let's be aware and keep our kid's safe -- report Underage Drinking,” urged Karen Wilde, member of the Big Bear Breakthrough Task Force Coalition. “Saving our youth's lives is saving our future!” Not only are underage drinking parties a concern for those with minor children, they impact neighbors through noise, vandalism, wasted tax dollars, fights, car crashes and longer wait times for police and emergency services. Fifty five percent of 11th graders say it is “very easy” for them to obtain alcohol (California Healthy Kids Survey 2009-10). Seventy three percent of underage offenders report they got their alcohol from a residence and over half say it was from a house party (County of San Bernardino POLD survey 2008-09). In 2012, 67 people lost their lives in alcohol-related traffic crashes in San Bernardino County according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Each year approximately 5,000 people under the age of 21 die nationally as a result of underage drinking. In 2010, there were approximately 189,000 emergency rooms visits by persons under age 21 for injuries and other conditions linked to alcohol. According to the 2011 Youth Risk Behavior Survey, high school students reported that in the last 30 days 39 percent drank some amount of alcohol, 22 percent binge drank, eight percent drove after drinking alcohol and 24 percent rode with a driver who had been drinking alcohol.