• The National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence fights the stigma and the disease of alcoholism and other drug addictions.

19th Annual Alcohol Awareness Month Theme-April 2005: TOGETHER, WE CAN STOP UNDERAGE DRINKING

HISTORY: Since 1987, the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence - founded in 1944 to educate Americans about the treatable and preventable disease of alcoholism - has sponsored Alcohol Awareness Month during April. Since then, many other public and private groups at the national, state and community level have recognized Alcohol Awareness Month as an important national health observance and have pitched in to provide timely information to children, families and communities across America. This year, NCADD, the Leadership to Keep Children Alcohol Free, and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) have joined together to sponsor this important effort. Alcohol Awareness Month spotlights underage drinking and the destructive effects it can have on the nation's youth. Underage drinking is a complex problem, one that can only be solved through a sustained and cooperative effort between parents, schools, community leaders, interested organizations and individuals, and America's youth. This year's theme, "Together, We Can Stop Underage Drinking," emphasizes the collective, collaborative, and comprehensive efforts needed to address this critical public health problem. "As a society, we've got to do a far better job persuading our citizens and especially our young people that alcohol use is a dead end," says NCADD President Stacia Murphy in relation to the theme for 2005. "Working together from all different perspectives on this problem is the only way to head off and to heal the devastating consequences of underage drinking." An integral part of Alcohol Awareness Month is Alcohol-Free Weekend, which takes place on the first weekend of April (April 1-3, 2005). Alcohol-Free Weekend is designed to raise public awareness about the use of alcohol and how it may be affecting individuals, families, and businesses. During Alcohol-Free Weekend, NCADD extends an open invitation to all Americans to engage in three alcohol-free days and to use this time to contact local NCADD Affiliates and other alcoholism agencies to learn more about alcoholism and its early symptoms. CO-SPONSORS: The Leadership to Keep Children Alcohol Free is a unique coalition of more than 30 Governors' spouses, Federal agencies, and public and private groups focused on preventing the use of alcohol by children ages 9 to 15. For more information, please visit their website: http://alcoholfreechildren.org. SAMHSA is a part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. SAMHSA's mission is to build resilience and facilitate recovery for people with or at risk for substance abuse and mental illness. For more information, please visit their website at: http://www.samhsa.gov/news/news.html. SOME HELPFUL LINKS Alcoholics Anonymous http://www.aa.org Al-Anon http://www.al-anon.alateen.org National Association for Children of Alcoholics http://www.nacoa.org Center for Science in the Public Interest http://www.cspinet.org/booze/youthsurveys.htm American Medical Association http://www.ama-assn.org/ama/pub/category/3566.html National Clearinghouse for Alcohol and Drug Information http://store.health.org/catalog/results.aspx?h=publications&topic=97 TeenGetGoing https://www.teengetgoing.com/index.asp Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth http://camy.org/ Facts On Tap http://www.factsontap.org/default.html

National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence, Inc.

244 East 58th Street, 4th Floor, New York, NY 10022 phone: 212/269-7797   fax: 212/269-7510 email: national@ncadd.org   http://www.ncadd.org HOPE LINE: 800/NCA-CALL (24-hour Affiliate referral)