A report by the Institute of Alcohol Studies shows kids are more likely to feel worried and a little overwhelmed when parents are tipsy.
The study didn’t look at alcohol addiction but rather non-dependent drinking and its effect on the family.
By conducting an online survey of 1000 parents and their kids along with focus groups and a public enquiry with experts in the field, researchers gained some noteworthy insight.
They found that it really doesn’t take much to have kids feeling worried when they see a parent tipsy, even if it’s in a party or positive environment. It was also shown to disrupt kids’ bedtime and sleeping routines.
Half of the parents who were looked at said their children had seen them tipsy at some point, with 29 percent admitting to having been intoxicated.
Twenty-nine percent also felt it wasn’t a significant issue being drunk in front of their kids once it wasn’t a regular occurrence.
And then came the part where the kids got to say how they felt about the situation. We do love a refreshing tipple (or two) on occasion but this part could tug at the ol’ heart-strings.
One in five children said they felt embarrassed by their parents’ alcohol consumption, 11 percent felt anxious, eight percent claimed it made parents less predictable, seven percent said parents argued with them more and 15 percent said they had been put to bed earlier or later than the norm.
Chief Executive of the Institute of Alcohol Studies, Katherine Brown said;
“All parents strive to do what’s best for their children, so it’s important to share this research about the effects drinking can have on parenting and what steps parents can take to protects their children.
“Children are exposed to a barrage of marketing messages that glamorise drinking with strong links to sport and pop music. Parents have a tough job on their hands teaching children about the negative side of alcohol.”
They most definitely do! But surely this has zero implications for a drop of wine at dinner, so we think we’re ok…
