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TALLAHASSEE - The holiday season is filled with festivities where families, friends and co-workers gather to relax and enjoy the various celebrations that occur through the arrival of the New Year. To help prevent alcohol-related accidents, President Bush has declared December as National Drunk and Drugged Driving (3D) Prevention Month. In conjunction with the President's effort to reinforce safety this holiday season, the Department of Children and Families (DCF) encourages Floridians to celebrate responsibly during the holidays and throughout the year.
"The holidays are a time to celebrate with loved ones," said DCF Secretary Lucy D. Hadi. "So, it's important to remember to designate a sober driver before the festivities begin."
To help your family enjoy this special time with each other, the Department of Children and Families is offering tips on how to keep your family healthy and safe this season.
Plan a non-alcoholic holiday party with your child so children learn that they can have fun without alcohol.
Call ahead to make sure that holiday events for older children will be alcohol-free.
Create some substance-free holiday traditions for your family.
Tell your child that adults may be drinking during the holidays, but under no circumstances is your child allowed to drink alcohol.
To lower the risk of alcohol poisoning, be sure to throw away abandoned drinks with leftover alcohol. (Children love to imitate adults and if they have access to leftover drinks, they may taste the contents.)
Offer plenty of non-alcoholic beverages and activities at your holiday gatherings that don't revolve around drinking.
Model responsible behaviors by ensuring those guests who have been drinking do not drive.
For your holiday meal, let your child help you prepare and serve traditional drinks that are alcohol-free, such as non-alcoholic cider, eggnog, or punch.
Offer delicious, non-alcoholic food at your holiday festivities. Your child can even help you prepare some dishes.
In addition to keeping children from consuming alcohol over the holidays, it's important for adults to keep ourselves in check, too. A 2002 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) study found that nearly two-thirds of the children killed in alcohol-related crashes were riding with impaired drivers. Fewer than 20% of the children killed were properly restrained at the time of the crash, and restraint use decreased as drivers' blood alcohol concentration increased. 12-23-05
© 2005 North
Country Gazette
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