Teens in a bad way

OUT OF CONTROL: Many teenagers are drunk or stoned when they first have sex. Pic: Bebeto Matthews. 04/05/1996.

Parents at fault for rising suicides, drinking, gangs

Parents are to blame for shock increases in the number of teenagers attempting suicide, binge drinking, joining gangs and falling pregnant.

Research released yesterday by the Medical Research Council revealed that one in five children between grade 8 and grade 11 had tried to commit suicide in the six months before they were interviewed by the researchers.

The council's second youth risk behaviour survey, which polled more than 10000 high school children in all nine provinces in 2008, also revealed that:

• 19% of the teenagers questioned were members of a gang, up from 14% in 2002;

• 29% had been binge drinking in the month prior to being questioned, up from 23% eight years ago;

• 18% had driven drunk, up from 8% in the previous study; and

• 19% had become pregnant or fathered a child, an increase of 3% on the previous survey.

The proportion of respondents who had attempted suicide had risen to 21% from 17% in 2002.

More children were now gang members: 19% as against 15% in the previous study.

Research director Priscilla Reddy said the increase in the proportion of teenagers who engaged in binge drinking was "very alarming". She said that more boys than girls drank excessively, "especially in rural provinces like Eastern Cape".

Of those polled, 35% of the teenagers said they had drunk alcohol in the past month.

The research showed that marginally more teens were using drugs - there were 1% rises in mandrax and cocaine use (both at 7%), and dagga (10%). Use of the methamphetamine known as tik was 6% of the teenage population. The use of the drug was not assessed in the previous study.

But Reddy said fewer teens had had sex - 38% compared to 2002's 41% - because of the success of Aids awareness campaigns. But of those who did have sex, only 31% always used a condom and 3% more teens, 19%, had become pregnant or fathered a child.

The research also found that 3% more teenagers were overweight (20%), and 42% did very little or no exercise, a 4% increase on the previous study.

Nearly a third, or 29%, of the teenagers admitted to watching more than three hours of TV a day.

Limpopo education department psychologist Asnath Mojapelo said teenagers were "out of control because of poor role modelling by parents, who are not strong enough to discipline their children".

"Parents need to do more to show their children that they love them," she said, adding that children joined gangs to feel valued.

Acting health department director-general Yogan Pillay said: "We must decrease the number of sexual partners teenagers have. We must ensure the consistent use of condoms."

SA Depression and Anxiety Group director Zane Wilson said she takes calls from children "every day who want to kill themselves". The youngest would-be suicide was a nine-year-old girl who had been sexually abused by a family member.

One teen recently SMSed: "I was gang raped two years ago but I never told anyone because they said they would kill me! I am not coping and I want to end my pain."