TRIBAL PROGRAM NEWS
Underage Drinking Awareness
by Delina John, Prevention Coordinator
I have chosen this month’s article
to focus on binge drinking. It’s impor
tant that we as parents have all the facts
about what is happening in our com
munities so if we see signs of under
age drinking, we can help.
Let’s all be a part of the solution and
let our children know what they could
be facing if they choose to drink. If
you want more information on under
age drinking or have questions, please
call 1-800-600-5599 or 541-444-8267.
Binge Drinking Linked to
4,000 Deaths Annually
Binge drinking, defined as drink
ing too much alcohol too fast, has been
linked to as many as 4,000 deaths ev
ery year from alcohol overdose.
Until recently, deaths by alcohol
poisoning were largely unreported in
the media. Now that college campuses
are required by law to publish all student
deaths, people are learning more about
the tragic effects of binge drinking.
Around the country, reports from
victims’ families and county medical
examiners confirm that alcohol can be
a lethal drug. And it’s particularly true
for teenagers.
Of the first eight cases ever re
ported as alcohol poisoning, half were
16 years old or younger. At least half
were first-time drinkers and had never
been drunk before.
Five of them were put to bed by
friends or their own parents to “sleep
it off,” only to be found dead in the
morning.
Tragically, what these friends and
parents didn’t know is that if a person
drinks too much alcohol too quickly
before falling asleep, the alcohol will
shut down breathing and heart functions,
killing a person within hours. That’s
because of the physiological effects of
alcohol, which suppresses nerves that
control involuntary actions like breath
ing, heartbeat, and the gag reflex.
Even after a person stops drinking,
alcohol in the stomach continues to
enter the bloodstream and circúlate
throughout the body. That’s why binge
drinking is especially dangerous, be
cause many victims ingest a lethal dose
of alcohol before losing consciousness.
By the time they do lose conscious
ness, and even if friends and family
rush them to a hospital, it may be too
late. Even if caught in time and the vic
tim survives, alcohol poisoning often
results in permanent brain damage.
Here’s what can happen when a per
son drinks too much alcohol too fast:
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Choking: The victim chokes on his
or her own vomit.
Breathing stops: The victim’s
breathing becomes irregular and
slows to a stop.
Heartbeat stops: The victim’s heart
beat becomes irregular or stops.
Hypothermia: The victim’s body
temperature decreases, leading to
cardiac arrest.
Hypoglycemia: The victim’s blood
sugar level plummets and causes
seizures.
Here are the critical warning signs
of alcohol poisoning:
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Mental confusion: The victim is in a
stupor, a coma, or cannot be roused.
No response: The victim does not
respond or cannot feel pinching of
his/her skin.
Vomiting while sleeping
Seizures
Slow breathing: Breathing is less
than eight breaths per minute.
Irregular breathing: There are 10
or more seconds between breaths.
Hypothermia: Low body tempera
ture, victim is pale or has bluish
skin color.
If you suspect that someone may
have ingested a fatal dose of alcohol, call
for emergency medical help immediately:
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Call 9-1-1.
Stay with the victim.
Keep the victim from choking on
vomit by placing them on their side.
Tell the emergency medical tech
nicians exactly how much alcohol
the victim drank - don’t guess or
minimize the amount!
Prompt medical attention is the only
way to save a person’s life if he/she
has consumed too much alcohol. It can
be deadly to try to reverse the effects
of alcohol by drinking coffee, taking a
cold bath or shower, sleeping, or walk
ing it off.
So once again the message is clear
- talk to your child/children! The more
information you as the parent can give
your child/children on the conse
quences of underage drinking, the bet
ter. It will give them the power to stay
above the influence!
Protect Children’s Health During
and After School
New Statewide School Policy Protects Kids from Health Risks of
Tobacco, Helps Reduce Number of New Youth Smokers
A new mandatory policy that took
effect Jan. 1, 2006, prohibits students,
staff, and visitors from using any to
bacco product at any time on school
property in Oregon.
“Any time” means during after
school programming, weekend sports
events, and evening programming in
or around school property.
Public health officials in the Oregon
Department of Human Services (DHS)
said the new policy marks an impor
tant step toward protecting Oregon kids
from the health risks of tobacco.
“Every day in Oregon, 20 kids start
smoking. One-third of them will even
tually die of a tobacco-related disease,”
said Mel Kohn, M.D., state epidemiolo
gist in DHS. “Most adult smokers
started using tobacco before they turned
18, which underscores the significance
of this new policy.”
Kohn estimates that about 6,700
Oregon children under age 18 become
new smokers each year. Research con
ducted in the state shows that 17 per
cent of 1 l,h-graders and 10 percent of
eighth-graders have smoked in the past
30 days.
“With this new policy, all of us -
school staff, visitors, and parents - are
Memorial Day
Ceremony
May 29, 2006- 11 a.m.
Government Hill
Siletz, Oregon
Opening
Invocation
The Lord’s Prayer
Welcome
Memorial Day Address
Presentation of Flowers
Salute to Veterans
Closing
Lunch - Noon at the
Siletz Tribal Community Center
Job Line
541-444-8296 or
1-800-922-1399, ext. 1296
Note: “Open Until Filled” vacancies may close at any time. The tribe’s In
dian Preference policy will apply. Tribal government will not discriminate in
selection because of race, creed, age, sex, color, national origin, physical handi
Visit our Web site at
www.ctsi.nsn.us
cap, marital status, politics, membership or non-membership in an employee
organization.
OAR 581-021-0110
Tobacco-Free Schools
Procession to Veterans Memorial
CTSI Jobs
CTSI Employment
helping build a healthier environment
for Oregon’s youth,” said Nikki Squire,
chair of the Oregon Board of Education,
which passed a rule in May 2004 that
requires schools to be tobacco-free. “This
puts what students are learning about
tobacco in the classroom into practice.”
Kohn said that tobacco-free school
policies are an important tool in keep
ing kids away from tobacco and the
harmful effects of secondhand smoke.
“The idea that tobacco use is nor
mal and that it is socially acceptable
because respected adults and others do
it encourages kids to pick up the habit,”
said Kohn. “Tobacco-free school poli
cies are helping change the perception
that smoking and chew are okay.”
Kohn said that the next step for each
district in Oregon is to adopt the policy
set by the State Board of Education.
“In fact, many school districts are
working to adopt policies that go be
yond the statewide rule, such as imple
menting curriculum on avoiding to
bacco use, banning all tobacco adver
tising, tobacco-related clothing, gear,
and paraphernalia in school buildings,”
he said.
The Oregon DHS can provide free
metal all-weather signs for your school.
You can make a difference now, how
ever, by talking to school boards to
change policy, including statements in
school-use contracts signed by groups,
and provide free training and educa
tion for individuals and/or groups that
use school grounds.
If you have questions about your
school’s policy, contact DeAnna Pearl,
TPEP coordinator, at 1-800-648-0449,
ext. 1659, or 541-444-9659.
I .) For the purposes of this rule, “tobacco”
is defined to include any lighted or un
lighted cigarette, cigar, pipe, bidi, clove
cigarette, and any other smoking prod
uct, and spit tobacco, also known as smoke
less, dip, chew, and snuff, in any form.
2 .) No student, staff member, or school visi
tor is permitted to smoke, inhale, dip or
chew, or sell tobacco at any time, includ
ing non-school hours:
a. In any building, facility, or vehicle
owned, leased, rented, or chartered
by the school district, school, or
public charter school; or
b. On school grounds, athletic
grounds, or parking lots.
3 .) No student is permitted to possess a to-
bacco product:
a. In any building, facility, or vehicle
owned, leased, rented, or chartered
by the school district, school, or
public charter school; or
b. On school grounds, athletic
grounds, or parking lots.
4.) By Jan. I, 2006, school districts must
establish policies and procedures to
implement and enforce this rule for stu
dents, staff, and visitors.
April 2006
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Siletz News
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