Teen drinking is a sensitive subject. There are parents who don’t want their teens in the same building as alcohol. Parents who are ok if their teen experiments a little, as long as it’s safe. Parents who provide the alcohol or allow underage drinking. And there are parents who turn a blind eye, believing that it isn’t an issue or that their child will simply know what’s best.

Teens are surrounded by alcohol, and to assume that they won’t have access or opportunity to drink it is simply ignorant. Did you know there are ads in their social media feeds for alcoholic beverages? Do you keep alcohol in your home? How well do you know your teen’s friends and their parents? At some point parents must begin to realize that teen drinking is a real issue to confront, and that their child may already be drinking without their knowledge. If that is the case, there are concerning facts and realities that need to be discussed.

10 Things Your Teen Daughter Needs to Know About Teen Drinking

1. Excessive drinking by underage teens causes over 4,300 deaths in America every single year.

2. In 2010, there were almost 200,000 emergency room visits by teens for injuries and illness due to alcohol consumption.

3. Almost a quarter of high school students surveyed in 2013 reported that they had ridden with a driver who had been drinking.

4. Drinking before age 15 makes you 6x as likely to become an alcoholic later in life than if you wait to drink until the legal age of 21.

5. You are at higher risk for sexual activity, unplanned pregnancy, and sexual assault.

6. Many teen girls drink to combat issues with depression and anxiety, but underage drinking actually makes you more likely to experience depression and puts you at higher risk for suicide.

7. Underage drinkers are more likely to die young or be seriously injured from alcohol related car crashes, alcohol poisoning, choking, drowning, and other unintentional injuries.

8. Even if you’re underage, the legal problems that come with drinking – such as arrest, drunk driving charges, and other legal consequences – can stick with you forever.

9. Underage drinkers are more likely to binge drink, which cause serious hangovers, illness, and causes changes in the development of the brain with lifelong problems.

10. Drinking as a teenager can affect your current academic life, as well as your college abilities and prospects. (all facts from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

If your teen daughter is drinking, she needs to understand the real, lifelong consequences that come with underage drinking. Many girls think a few social drinks here and there aren’t illegal or harmful, but it just isn’t true. If your teen daughter has already developed a drinking problem there is help for her. Do not let teen drinking go unnoticed or unchallenged – talk to her today.