STUDY: MOM IS BEST WEAPON AGAINST TEEN DRUG ABUSE

LONDON - A caring mother is the single most important factor in preventing
teenagers from abusing drugs and alcohol, researchers said on Friday.

An international study showed that teenagers living with both parents are
less likely to suffer from alcohol and drug problems but a strong maternal
bond is the most effective barrier to substance abuse.

"These findings suggest that living with both parents may inhibit drug use
but only if availability through peer networks is not very high," said Dr.
Paul McArdle, of Newcastle University in northern England, who led the study.

"They also suggest that attachment, particularly to mothers, is a more
potent inhibitor and that this is truly across cultures and substances."

The report, which is published in the journal Addiction, involved nearly
4,000 teenagers in England, Ireland, Italy, Germany and the Netherlands.
They were questioned about their use of cannabis, amphetamines, ecstasy,
LSD, tranquilizers and alcohol.

The teenagers also filled in questionnaires about their relationship with
their parents and grandparents, how well they were supervised after school
and whether they were allowed to meet friends at home.

"Both the quality of family relationships and the structure of families
appear to be significant influences on youth drug use," McArdle said in a
statement.

But he added a strong maternal bond offered the greatest protection against
developing drug habits.

The rate of drug abuse among teenagers living with both parents and who had
a good relationship with their mother was 16.6 percent. If either factor
was missing the drug abuse rate rose to 32 percent.

More than 42 percent of teenagers living in one parent families who did not
have a strong bond with their mother used drugs.

Drug prevention campaigns in British schools and on television warn
teenagers about the danger of drugs and alcohol but McArdle said no one is
tackling the issue of parental responsibility.

"This study shows that the quality of family life, or rather the lack of it
for many young people, is at the core of the drugs problem in Western
society," he added.