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Binge-drinking SA Youth are using ‘transactional sex’ to get themselves alcohol: Study

Teens are taking more risks than ever with alcohol

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Soul City Institute and the STRIVE consortium carried out the research focused on rural and urban teenagers and their relationship with booze. Their findings were extremely alarming:

Monitoring and Evaluation Manager for SCI, Lebohang Letsela, said that ‘transactional sex’ was used by a number of those surveyed as a means of getting alcohol. In what completes a vicious cycle, the findings state unplanned and ‘regrettable’ sex are the most common unwanted results of teen binge drinking.

Other shocking findings:

  • Schoolchildren have easy access to alcohol within school hours.
  • The use of colour, images and creative slogans make alcohol advertising attractive to youth. Adverts showing young people having fun encourage youth to try different brands and beverages.
  • A sizeable number of those surveyed report that they often see ‘alcohol-related sexual health risks’ around the taverns they visit. This includes unprotected sex, and disturbingly, sexual assault.

Read: How to empower our young people against underage drinking

The research was presented at the 8th South African Aids Conference in Durban, on Tuesday during a session on ‘Alcoholic availability, promotion and affordability on young people’s sexuality and HIV risk’.

Lebohang Letsela summarised how alcohol consumption has become the default activity of choice for our kids

“Research found that drinking, even ‘binge drinking’ is generally a social norm and was reinforced by advertising and pricing and sales. There was also alcohol available through secondary supply — where parents sent minors to purchase alcohol and outlets sold to minors, and boyfriends bought for girlfriends.”

 

Read: Teenagers and Alcohol: What you need to know

The study’s conclusion looked at how ‘alcohol culture’ has saturated our teens’ lives. Even in their own homes, kids are exposed to ‘appealing alcohol advertising’.

The Institute see structural reform as the only way forward, by increasing alcohol prices and reducing the number of outlets from where it can be sold.