Family relationships and primary prevention of drug use in early adolescence.
Mendes, F., Relvas, AP, Lourenço, M., Reccio, JL., Pietralunga, S., Broyer, G., Bussac, MH., Calafat, A. and Stocco, P.
(1999) Coimbra: IREFREA.

ABSTRACT

European culture contains within itself a great preventive potential because of its organization, social structure, culture, family organization and a continuing humanist conception and solidarity, but  this potential has not been used to decrease the consumption of licit and illicit substances, that continue to increase in our societies. Also, the non-existence or the lack of objectivity on the evaluation of preventive interventions, difficult the development of primary prevention policies.

Considering all the available information, a priority is to develop a policies within the families, which presupposes an intervention at different moments of children’s growth and development (from childhood to adolescence), which trains parents in the development of behavioural skills and finally includes an educational component for parents with information about substances, for them and their children.