Cobb & Douglas Public Health recognizes that mistakes sometimes occur, such as the recent unusual placement of our Live Healthy Douglas Coalition’s Underage Drinking Prevention Billboard. However, we are very appreciative of the quick response from CBS signs once the error was brought to their attention. CBS has taken full responsibility for the error, has removed the billboard, and offered to donate additional free advertising space to help promote the mission of the Live Healthy Douglas Coalition. Live Healthy Douglas strives to make Douglas County a drug-free and healthier place to live by reducing youth substance use and improving lifestyle choices through community collaboration, advocacy and education.
We hope that this event will shed light on the issue of underage and binge drinking in Douglas County.
In Douglas County the average beginning age of alcohol use is 13 years-old. Because some youth are drinking so early, it is very important for our community, particularly parents and other adults, to become the primary positive influence for our youth and young adults. We need to educate them about the dangers, and life changing effects of alcohol abuse.
The goal of the Underage Drinking billboard is to send the message that “underage drinking is STILL a big deal.” Despite reports that show the numbers are dropping, many youth are still using alcohol and we want them to understand the negative consequences and damaging effects of underage drinking.
One of our goals is to reduce the beginning age of alcohol use among 9-20 year olds. Youth report that they primarily have access to alcohol at home and at friends’ homes. We need our community to understand, and do what they can to provide an environment where alcohol is not as easily available.
For more information visit www.CobbAndDouglasPublicHealth.org.