ISPCC statistics - Figures warn of dangerous problems

The horrors of drugs and alcohol are facts of life for Irish children.

The Irish Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Children (ISPCC) warned yesterday that more than 6,600 children have been treated in the past three years for drug and alcohol abuse.

While the ISPCC does not wish to alarm parents unnecessarily, there clearly is a serious problem, and parents should be forewarned. Substances abused by children included alcohol, cannabis, ecstasy and even heroin.

Alcohol abuse was most prevalent among the 13-18 year age group. Those most vulnerable to drug abuse were children with low self-esteem.

Some individual counselling has been provided for 157 children, and mentoring for another 219, while group therapy has been provided for 3,170 children. Boys receiving treatment outnumber girls by three to one.

A World Health Organisation survey found that 88% of Irish teenagers in the 15-16 age bracket have abused alcohol and 72% have been drunk in the past 12 months. Those are frightening statistics which warn of dangerous problems ahead.

Although society frequently tends to downplay the perils of alcohol, it is a dangerous drug that frequently leads to even more dangerous drugs. This is a problem we need to tackle with the support of the whole community.