National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA)

Understanding parental influence on children through conscious and unconscious efforts, as well as when and how to talk with children about alcohol, can help parents have more influence than they might think on a child’s alcohol use. Parents can play an important role in helping their children develop healthy attitudes toward drinking while minimizing its risk.

The below resources provide information on treatment, support, and mental and physical health for middle schoolers, as well as additional resources for school projects. Tips for Parents Quick tips on getting started with talking to your middle schooler about alcohol. Mental Health Emergencies Many young people who drink also struggle with other substance use disorders and mental health issues, such...

Use the following role-playing exercise to explore and discuss peer pressure situations with your middle schooler. To view or download printouts of the scripts, please click here [PDF – 2.96 MB]. Role-Playing Exercise Can your middle schooler figure out what kind of pressure is going on in each scene? Give your middle schooler the script for this exercise and ask...

Middle schoolers face peer pressure in many different ways, whether it’s to have the latest smartphone or app, wear trendy clothes, or go somewhere to hang out with friends. Your middle schooler will feel peer pressure when they are being pushed toward making certain choices—good or bad— by their friends or classmates. What’s so difficult about avoiding peer pressure? Simply...

When middle schoolers face pressure to do things that are not right or good for them, they have the right to resist. They have the right to say no, the right not to give a reason why, and the right to just walk away from a situation. Resisting pressure can be hard for some people. Why? They… Are afraid of...

Use the following role-playing exercise with your middle schooler to explore and discuss different ways of saying no. To view or download printouts of the scripts, please click here [PDF – 740.17 KB]. Role-Playing Exercise Give your middle schooler the script and ask them to read the scenes below. Then discuss the different ways to say no and why these...

Use the following role-playing exercise to explore and discuss two types of peer pressure—spoken and unspoken pressure—with your middle schooler. To view or download printouts of the scripts, please click here [PDF – 1.26 MB]. Role-Playing Exercise Give your middle schooler the script and ask them to read the below scenes, and then discuss the type of peer pressure represented...

Underage possession of alcohol is illegal in the United States, and the minimum legal drinking age is 21. The earlier that a young person starts to drink, the more likely they are to have alcohol-related problems as a teenager or adult. Drinking at a young age greatly increases the risk for many problems now and in adulthood. Drinking alcohol can...

Use the following role-playing exercise to explore and discuss expectations around alcohol with your middle schooler. To view or download printouts of the scripts, please click here [PDF – 3.98 MB]. Role-Playing Exercise Do you think drinking a sports drink will make you a better athlete? What about if you wear the coolest new clothes—will everyone stop and check you...

Tuesday, September 26, 2023, 12:00 pm EDT to Tuesday, September 26, 2023, 1:00 pm EDT

The 2023 NIAAA Liaison Group Virtual Roundtable with Dr. George F. Koob, NIAAA Director, and the NIAAA senior staff will be held on September 26, 2023, at 12 noon ET. Meeting details and a Zoom link are below. We hope you will be able to join us and warmly encourage your participation. Please RSVP to Deborah Langer at deborah.langer@nih.gov...

Welcome to NIAAA for Middle School Underage drinking is a significant public health problem in the United States. This webpage contains interactive activities to help parents, caregivers, and teachers introduce and reinforce key messages about peer pressure, resistance skills, and other important topics related to underage drinking. These engaging activities are designed for middle schoolers ages 11 to 13. They...

May 2019 Primary Representatives ICCFASD Chairperson Patricia A. Powell, Ph.D. Deputy Director National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism National Institutes of Health 6700B Rockledge Drive, Room 1207, MSC 6902 Bethesda, MD 20892- 6902 Phone: 301-443-5106 E-mail: ppowell@mail.nih.gov For deliveries: 6700B Rockledge Drive, Bethesda, MD 20817 ICCFASD Scientific Coordinator and Executive Secretary Tatiana Balachova, Ph.D. Health Scientist Administrator Division of...

Consumir alcohol forma parte, sin duda, de la cultura estadounidense al igual que las conversaciones entre padres e hijos sobre sus riesgos. El alcohol afecta a las personas de distintas maneras en las diferentes etapas de la vida. En el caso de los niños y adolescentes, el alcohol puede interferir con el desarrollo normal del cerebro. Los diferentes efectos del...

September 20, 2023

NIAAA shares the sad news that Sally M. Anderson, Ph.D., passed away on September 14, 2023. For more than two decades, Dr. Anderson was integral to the leadership of the Interagency Coordinating Committee on Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (ICCFASD). NIAAA Director Dr. George F. Koob said, “Sally made major and seminal contributions to our efforts in FASD. Our thoughts go...

September 19, 2023

This article was first published in NIAAA Spectrum Volume 15, Issue 3. Dawn Wayman, M.H.S., has been selected as the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) Scientific Diversity Officer (SDO). The role of SDO represents a new position at NIAAA and emphasizes the institute’s commitment to advancing diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) both internally and in the...

La adicción al alcohol es un trastorno crónico recurrente asociado con el consumo compulsivo de alcohol, la pérdida del control sobre la ingesta y la aparición de un estado emocional negativo cuando el alcohol ya no está disponible. El trastorno por consumo de alcohol (AUD, por su sigla en inglés) es una afección caracterizada por la capacidad deteriorada para detener...

Alcohol addiction is a chronic relapsing disorder associated with compulsive alcohol drinking, the loss of control over intake, and the emergence of a negative emotional state when alcohol is no longer available. Alcohol use disorder (AUD) is a condition characterized by an impaired ability to stop or control alcohol use despite adverse social, occupational, or health consequences. It is a...

Consumo moderado Según las Guías alimentarias para estadounidenses, 2020-2025 , los adultos en edad legal de beber pueden elegir no beber alcohol o, cuando beben, limitar el consumo a dos bebidas o menos en un día para los hombres y a una bebida o menos en un día para las mujeres. Beber menos es mejor para la salud que beber...