NIDA Launches Online Substance Abuse Prevention Resource for Parents

As part of National Substance Abuse Prevention Month, the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) has launched Family Checkup, an online resource that equips parents with research-based skills to help keep their children drug-free.

NIDA-funded research has shown the critical role parents play in preventing their children from using drugs. Family Checkup poses questions for parents to consider as they interact with their children, highlighting parenting skills that are important in preventing the initiation or progression of drug use among youth. The resource incorporates videos and other information demonstrating positive and negative examples of parenting techniques. The tools were developed by the Child and Family Center at the University of Oregon.

Research shows that positive parenting techniques can also alter a child's genetic susceptibility to psychiatric disorders. Read more in Psychiatric News here. See also the Concise Guide to Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Fourth Edition, available from American Psychiatric Publishing here.