Valery Doronkin, the head of a coordinating center established by the Moscow Patriarchate to combat alcoholism and to endorse sobriety, referred this week to the major problem of alcoholism and other addictions affecting teenagers and young adults in the country.
In an article coinciding with the beginning of the new academic year in Russia, Doronkin said health ministry figures show that teens experiment with cigarettes at the age of 13 to 14, and, even more ominously, are exposed to alcohol and drug use at the ages of 15 to 16.
Alcohol-related fatalities have dramatically increased in Russia over the past years, leading to an initiative by the Russian Orthodox Church to change the attitude of parents, educators and, of course, young people.