Blog Post 8: Peer Pressure and Teens Health

Have you ever gone to party with your friends and drink alcohol because they did. Or have you ever skipped school because you believed that your friends would think of you as uncool if you didn't Or have you ever done something because you thought that everyone else was doing it. It can affect a person's health in many ways. It can cause physical, emotional, and mental distress.

I've read several articles regarding how peer pressure can affect teen's health. One article I've read was written by Camelita Thrift entitled "How does Peer Pressure affect many teens health" In her article, she said that many students on a collegiate level begin to test drugs because their friends or classmates encourage them to do so. And parents must be alarmed, because most of these drugs are extreme and very dangerous. The saddest part on teens trying to do drugs is when they got addicted to it, and these addiction could lead in serious side effects. She said that some side effects are hair loss, extreme weight loss, nausea and the likes. These never ending effects of peer pressure can affect teens physical health tremendously.

Camelita said, "Equally important, peer pressure can not only affect a person's health physically but also emotionally. Many young ladies and gentlemen decide to be sexually active because they think that everyone is doing it."

I agree with Camelita, in my former posts, I already talked about how can peer pressure affect teens decision when it comes to having sex with their partners. They are very willing to do it because they think, this can prove how much they love each other. Health is very important and I think teens must know how to take care of our health, and avoid those activities which can lead to sickness and improper functions of our body.

Another article I've read was entitled 'Peer Pressure can hurt healthy eating habits" by Lindsay Holden. She said that peer pressure in any form can be hard to accept. Its influence on teenagers runs from what clothing to wear on your body and how much food to put in your body. She said that experts describe lunch hour as social hour. Some teens are following a strict diet just to lose weight and fit in, so they can wear those dresses and skinny jeans. In extreme cases, some teens are just following their colleagues when it comes to eating habits which can lead to lifelong battles of obesity and eating disorder.

Holden said "Some kids will go through starving themselves because their friends are doing it. When they are on their way they might be fine, but for others it is a trigger for a lifelong struggle."

I agree with Holden, they actually have the same point, peer pressure is really a major factor when it comes to  affecting teen's feelings, emotionally, mentally and physically. For me, these problems on peer pressure are being experienced worldwide, especially in those countries who have a very liberated kind of living. It is dangerous and can destroy a child's well being and can cause to death. Parents must be really focus on their children and know how can they protect their children from peer pressure.

Blog Post 7: The cool spot; Peer Pressure, Alcohol and Drugs

Some might be feeling pressure from your friends, other people, or society as a whole through movies, music or advertising to use drugs or drink alcohol. Sometimes teens think about both the advantages and disadvantages of their actions and decisions but they seldom focus on the advantages of those.

In this post, I will share some of my insights regarding peer pressure and substance abuse, drugs and alcohol which are the most common forms of peer pressure. I've read some articles about this topic. One article I've read was written by Chris Becker entitled "Managing Pressure to use drugs or alcohol." He defined peer pressure as the feeling of being influenced to do something you wouldn't usually do because your peers are doing it. He said that it can  be a major factor in deciding whether you will try drugs or drink alcohol. Peer Pressure can be determined as negative when it causes you to do things you do not usually do. For example, you really don't want to try drugs or drink alcohol but it leaves you no choice since your friends are doing it.

He said "Part of being your own person means making decisions based on what is best for you, taking ownership and responsibility for what you do and how you think-but this doesn't mean that you can’t be a valuable part of a group."

I definitely agree with what he said, we are our own master. We, ourselves, we should know how to control what we are doing and think twice before doing anything. We must be very aware on the decisions we do, the actions we take and the consequences that we will face.

Another article I've read was written by Stephen J. Bahr entitled "Parental and Peer Influences on the Risk of Adolescent Drug Use" he said that When adolescents associate with peers who use drugs, they are much more likely to initiate drug use and adolescents who use drugs tend to choose friends who use drugs too.

He said "It is well established that peers have a strong influence on adolescent decisions to use drugs. An important practical question is how  family characteristics might influence the choice of peers."

It is true that family especially parents have the biggest influence on how a teen can choose their friends. Parents must take time to know who their child's friends are and take time to bond with them or at least know them personally. In this way, they would know what kind of people their kids are hanging out with. They would easily know if these people are good or bad influence to their kids.