Amongst the main news today has been advice from England's Chief Medical Officer, Sir Liam Donaldson, that parents should not give any alcohol at all to their under-15s and only to 15-17 year olds under supervision. Broadcasts noted that many parents think it responsible to introduce their children quite young to small amounts of alcohol so as to get them into the habit of responsible drinking and to reduce the mystique of alcohol. We are told that the government now thinks that is wrong.
And why, pray? Is it that there is some new medical discovery? News reports talk vaguely of damage to the developing brain during puberty. Well, no. There isn't actually any new medical evidence here at all. The evidence that has persuaded the Chief Medical Officer to make the announcement concerns whether children are more or less likely to engage in binge drinking if they have first experienced drink in the home. The evidence suggests that you are more likely to be a teenage binge drinker if you first drank in the home with your parents, not less.
So, to spell this out, today's announcement is not medical advice. It is advice about good parenting - about what sorts of family practice are more or less likely to result in your children becoming binge drinkers. But whilst I might be very interested in Sir Liam Donaldson's advice and opinion about medical matters, I can honestly say that I don't give a fig what he thinks about good parenting, and outside his immediate family and friends I don't see why anyone else should give a fig about his opinion on this matter, either. I suggest, frankly, that when he is speaking in his official capacity he sticks to commenting on medical matters - and on those I'll listen with interest to what he has to say.
