School drug prevention programs are not enough. They greatly increase students' knowledge about alcohol and other drugs, but they may not recent students from using drugs.
To be more effective, prevention programs should involve parents, students, schools and the entire community.
Programs that help students resist peer pressure to try alcohol and other drugs are important. But this learning should begin early, before the teenage years. Teens need more than "Just say NO!" as a reason to stay drug-free.
When given a list of 10 factors that could potentially deter teens from using drugs and alcohol, "Parental reaction" was consistently ranked by teens themselves as the greatest deterrent factor.
Most factors that influence risk begin early in a child's like. Most of those risks involve the family: discipline, structure, parents as role-models, and children's bonds to family & school.
The behavior and attitudes of parents are more important in helping students resist alcohol & other drugs than learning to resist the pressure of their peers.
