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If you have already successfully convinced your teen driver that tobacco and alcohol are harmful, especially while driving, the next big challenge that you are probably facing is to convince the young driver eager to explore the freedom offered by being able to drive about the dangers of using drugs and of driving under the influence of psychotropic substances.

While everybody knows about the dangers of using hard drugs, according to a recent study, most people, young and old alike, consider the use of milder substances, most notably marijuana, to be risk-free. Unfortunately, this belief cannot be further from the truth when it comes to driving. Marijuana usage for recreational purposes has recently become legal in many states, but that does not mean that it does not impair the ability to drive. The active ingredients in pot are known to affect concentration and coordination, the ability to judge distance, speed or sound correctly might also be affected and the substances also reduce reaction time and interfere with decision-making.

Parents have an essential role in informing their children about the risks of driving under the influence of drugs, so sit down with your child to discuss the issue and try to be as convincing as you can to make sure he or she will never sit behind the wheel while high or while being under the influence of alcohol.  It is what a driving school in Lakewood teaches, and something definitely they should not do.