No one is a bigger fan of Gossip Girl than me. But one thing that seriously disturbs me about the show is how Blair, Chuck, Nate, and Serena consume copious amounts of alcohol without ever appearing drunk (there are some exceptions, but they're few and far between). This depiction of binge drinking teaches kids —erroneously— that drinking doesn't have consequences. When you factor in the glamorization of the show's characters, underage consumption of champagne and martinis comes off as a rite of passage, and a sign of affluence, rank, and good times.

In reality, binge drinking can cause alcohol poisoning, lead to violent and suicidal behaviors, and failure to achieve life goals. I want to make sure my kid knows the reality, so he or she can make an informed decision on how or when to imbibe.

According a recent survey of 18,000 college students across the United States, about one in three female students engages in binge drinking. Women who are alcohol dependent are more likely to be at risk for liver disease and brain damage, according to the same Harvard study. And although men are more likely to binge drink than women, women are catching up as the social stigma around women drinking has begun to wane.

The average girl in America has her first drink at 13 years old, and girls can become addicted to alcohol from binge drinking for different reasons than boys.

Many of the following reasons have to do with systemic sexism, but according to the same Harvard study, girls who binge drink drink for reasons that are tied closely to their perception of themselves and their roles in the social world, as opposed to peer pressure. Some of the reasons girls binge drink (consume five or more drinks in one sitting) include family problems, to cope with anger, to cope with frustration, and to escape problems. On the other hand, peer pressure is the number one reason teenage boys binge drink.

I want to make sure my kid has ways to cope with uncomfortable situations in life that don't include alcohol. If I have a daughter, I want to make sure she knows that she's beautiful when she's angry, and that her frustrations are nothing to be ashamed about and certainly nothing she should work to hide or bury with copious amounts of mind-altering substances.

Besides the aforementioned health problems that pose a threat to female drinkers, girls who binge drink are more likely to engage in unprotected sex, or be too drunk to give consent to a sexual partner.

Photographer and college student Amanda Berg documented her experiences binge drinking and wrote the following for Time:

After a night of excessive drinking sexual assault can be redefined as a “hook up.” The loss of memory due to inebriation can proudly be termed “blacking out.”

Whether or not pride accompanies it, the behavior is risky nonetheless. From past experience, I can tell you that it can be damaging to one's self-esteem to feel like you don't have a say in your sexual behavior because you were binge drinking. I want to make sure my daughter knows how to protect herself. I also want to make sure my son is informed and understands consent, so he never violates another person's physical or emotional safety. Ever.

Let's not forget about the danger boys put themselves in when they binge drink. Because adolescent boys are typically physically larger than adolescent girls, they can metabolize alcohol at a slower rate and tend to get drunk less quickly.

However, boys are more prone to excessive binge drinking than girls are. Excessive binge drinking is when someone consumes ten or more drinks in one sitting. That's a whole lot of booze. Why do boys excessively binge drink? One study claims ideas of fitting notions of masculinity play a role in why they might turn to booze. I want to make sure my kid understands that gender is a relational construct, and that peer pressure to fit into a mold of masculinity can be just as painstaking for boys as the pressure to fit into a mold of femininity is for girls.

All kinds of pop culture references hold up booze as a way to celebrate victories, from "popping bottles" to raising a glass. However, it's not the only way to celebrate or cut loose, and I want to make sure my kid has alternative methods of having fun that are just as cool. As a parent, this starts by modeling dry methods of celebration before my kid even knows what alcohol is.

Sure, when you get your buzz on, you might feel like a rockstar. However, that buzz is only temporary, or until your brain craves more booze to feed its high. When you binge drink, that buzz becomes a buzz kill, and you can go from feeling on top of the world to feeling like you belong in the gutter, and in no time at all. I know, because I've been there.

I want to make sure my kid knows that self-worth is that little voice inside you that tells all the naysayers and critics to be quiet, and that in order to hear that voice loud and clear, you kind of have to be sober.

As a parent, I don't just want my kid to be OK, I want my kid to treat others with respect, kindness, courtesy, and love so that the people around him and her are also OK. Why? Because I made the decision to procreate out of those very reasons, and if I don't pay it forward, who will?

From drunk driving to taking advantage of someone, people can harm other people when they're excessively using alcohol. I don't want my kid to be in a position where he or she harms someone else because of booze. There are so many terrible things that can happen in the world that I have no control over. Teaching my kid how to be responsible with alcohol might prevent something bad from happening and, as a parent, that's something I know I'll feel good about.