Editorial: Parents can stop teens drinking

Teenagers and alcohol - it's a much debated subject. Some parents allow their teens to drink at home, some don't mind them drinking at parties, some even provide the alcohol.

Others, however, are like Peter Large. Mr Large wrote a letter to the editor yesterday, imploring parents to stop putting him in a difficult position with his daughter by allowing underage teens to serve alcohol to friends in their homes.

Mr Large was upset that his 17-year-old daughter had been invited to an unsupervised sleepover where alcohol was being served.

He said "we don't allow her to drink quite simply because it is illegal for her do to so".

As a mother of four I feel for Mr Large. I have survived three teen girls and a boy.

I have also seen what happens when a 15-year-old girl (my youngest daughter) drinks alcohol without constant supervision.

She was attending a 21st at a hotel, so yes I knew there would be alcohol, but also knew she wouldn't be served and that the adults there (whom I knew) would watch her. Stupid mistake. I forgot how cunning teens can be.

Within an hour of arriving she had drunk a carafe of still wine. She was a mess.

Someone phoned me and I went to get her. She had to be carried to the car, had been sick all over herself and could barely talk. I wasn't angry, I was scared.

A cold shower didn't help much and after tying her hair in a ponytail I put her to bed in the recovery position and sat with her until the small hours of the morning, when she finally stopped being sick and was sleeping soundly.

I was a heartbeat away from calling an ambulance. So Mr Large, you have my support. There's plenty of time to drink, and not enough time to be young and carefree.