Have you ever heard a variation of, “Isn’t part of the problem that in the United States we make alcohol off-limits to adolescents, and by doing so, make it more attractive to our kids? Wouldn’t we be better off lowering the legal drinking age and allowing our kids to drink with us, so that we could socialize them to responsibly use alcohol, like they do in Europe?”

On the surface, this sounds like a really reasonable idea.  The problem is that the research doesn’t support it.  At all.  RARC Director Dr. Danielle Dick debunks this myth and offers research-supported ways to reduce adolescent risky drinking in her new Medium article, Does Allowing Your Child to Use Alcohol in Your Home Teach Them to Drink Responsibly?