WIMMERA leaders are concerned that bored youth are turning to alcohol as an entertainment source.
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It comes after Horsham Rural City Council released the results of its youth survey. It identified that 65 per cent of respondents considered tackling alcohol and drug use and abuse as a priority.
Wimmera Drug Action Taskforce co-ordinator Sally Pymer said the consumption of alcohol by the younger generation was a cause for concern.
While the latest nationwide statistics suggest not many young people were drinking, she said those who were consuming alcohol were doing so – to excess.
Despite there not being Wimmera-based statistics about underage drinking, Ms Pymer said there appeared to be a perception that Horsham lacked sources of entertainment.
She said it appeared that young people turned to drinking and attending parties to fill the gap.
“It’s a concern if young people are drinking excessively. The brain doesn’t stop developing until around the age of 25, so there’s potential damage that could be occurring. The earlier people start drinking, the more likely they are to have problems in the future,” she said.
She said alcohol could also harm people indirectly.
“With younger brains not developed until around age 25, there may be more of an ‘act before think’ attitude, which could have negative effects on not only themselves but friends and other associates,” she said.
“Research presented at the Global Alcohol Conference in 2017 suggested over 90 per cent of teenagers have experienced at least one harm related to alcohol over the past year and 71 per cent of females report unwanted sexual attention.”
Wimmera Superintendent Paul Margetts said police were concerned about underage drinking – particularly because alcohol created a greater risk of harm and was used in greater numbers than illicit drugs.
“In terms of risk-taking by youth, we are not seeing an increase – but we see a concerning number of youth where alcohol misuse creates risky behaviour,” he said.
He said police were working with health, education, local government and service providers to form strategies to mitigate risks.
Horsham’s Holy Trinity Lutheran College school captains Oriana Panozzo and Josiah Mock agreed pressure to drink alcohol was a concern.
Josiah said he noticed there was pressure to drink in certain atmospheres – such as some sporting clubs.
Oriana said curiosity about alcohol could lead people to drink and it was easy to fall into the trap of following the lead of peers. She said young people were more likely to take on risky behaviours when they were bored.