4 ms·

I grew to dislike alcohol/wine because my parents were constantly badgering me to have some of their homemade wine/grappa growing up. I certainly saw the oppos

I grew to dislike alcohol/wine because my parents were constantly badgering me to have some of their homemade wine/grappa growing up. I certainly saw the opposite in the US where kids grow up kept strictly away from it, and then binge when they break free. As a result I'm probably going to offer it to my kid.

kyllo 11y ago
Careful with that if you raise your child in the US. Providing alcohol to a minor is a misdemeanor criminal offense in most states, even if you do it in your own home.
- strictnein 11y ago
  Most states (29/50) actually allow underage drinking at home with parental consent: http://drinkingage.procon.org/view.resource.php?resourceID=002591 http://drinkingage.procon.org/view.resource.php?resourceID=0...
Al-Khwarizmi 11y ago
I think you are on the right track. This is nothing scientific but from personal observation, in Mediterranean countries (where there is much less stigma with alcohol, it's consumed in family environments and kids usually try it) there is less alcoholism and alcohol-related problems. In countries where the laws and societal customs restrict alcohol more, people have much more of a tendency to go overboard when they do drink. For example, in Spain kids typically grow up buying drinks in shops, drinking them outside (the so-called "botellón") and partying until 5 or 6 AM from when they are like 15 or 16 (sometimes even at 13). It's considered to be a problem but most of the time nothing really serious happens, as they grow up knowing how to control themselves after they have drank too much and been taken home by their friends once or twice. When there are news about people jumping off balconies or doing similarly stupid things due to being dangerously drunk, they are almost inevitably British youngsters on holiday who aren't used to drinking in their country due to heavy taxation and restrictions, so their drinking goes completely out of hand when they suddenly get the chance to do what they never could before. Not saying that kids getting drunk at 13 is OK, but the other extreme is definitely bad too. Encouraging kids to have their first contact with alcohol in a family environment rather than in a wild partying trip to Ibiza is definitely a good idea in my book.
taneq 11y ago
I didn't drink until my early 20s, probably in part because when I was a kid my mum would mix white wine with orange juice as her preferred drink. If I found a glass of orange juice sitting in the kitchen, chances were it'd been 'poisoned' with wine. It wasn't until I tried bourbon and coke a lot later that I realised alcohol can taste good.
subpixel 11y ago
My grandmother was a smoker, and the story goes: she sat my mom and aunt down when they were in 8th/9th grade respectively, in the living room, and made them light up and smoke a cigarette each. To the end. It was a sickening, mildy traumatic experience and as a result neither of them ever smoked again. I'm unsure whether introducing other vices this way would have similar outcomes, but there's a lot to be said for simply removing the allure of secrecy and taboo.

kyllo 11y ago

Careful with that if you raise your child in the US. Providing alcohol to a minor is a misdemeanor criminal offense in most states, even if you do it in your own home.

strictnein 11y ago
Most states (29/50) actually allow underage drinking at home with parental consent: http://drinkingage.procon.org/view.resource.php?resourceID=002591 http://drinkingage.procon.org/view.resource.php?resourceID=0...

Al-Khwarizmi 11y ago

I think you are on the right track. This is nothing scientific but from personal observation, in Mediterranean countries (where there is much less stigma with alcohol, it's consumed in family environments and kids usually try it) there is less alcoholism and alcohol-related problems. In countries where the laws and societal customs restrict alcohol more, people have much more of a tendency to go overboard when they do drink. For example, in Spain kids typically grow up buying drinks in shops, drinking them outside (the so-called "botellón") and partying until 5 or 6 AM from when they are like 15 or 16 (sometimes even at 13). It's considered to be a problem but most of the time nothing really serious happens, as they grow up knowing how to control themselves after they have drank too much and been taken home by their friends once or twice. When there are news about people jumping off balconies or doing similarly stupid things due to being dangerously drunk, they are almost inevitably British youngsters on holiday who aren't used to drinking in their country due to heavy taxation and restrictions, so their drinking goes completely out of hand when they suddenly get the chance to do what they never could before. Not saying that kids getting drunk at 13 is OK, but the other extreme is definitely bad too. Encouraging kids to have their first contact with alcohol in a family environment rather than in a wild partying trip to Ibiza is definitely a good idea in my book.

taneq 11y ago

I didn't drink until my early 20s, probably in part because when I was a kid my mum would mix white wine with orange juice as her preferred drink. If I found a glass of orange juice sitting in the kitchen, chances were it'd been 'poisoned' with wine. It wasn't until I tried bourbon and coke a lot later that I realised alcohol can taste good.

subpixel 11y ago

My grandmother was a smoker, and the story goes: she sat my mom and aunt down when they were in 8th/9th grade respectively, in the living room, and made them light up and smoke a cigarette each. To the end. It was a sickening, mildy traumatic experience and as a result neither of them ever smoked again. I'm unsure whether introducing other vices this way would have similar outcomes, but there's a lot to be said for simply removing the allure of secrecy and taboo.