Leah started drinking and taking drugs at the age of 14 with friends, and would often turn up to school drunk. At 16 she became pregnant as a result of a drunken one-night stand. Her message to other young people who drink is to be aware of the situations they can get into, and that doing drugs is silly.

Michelle used drugs and got drunk at weekends when she was a teenager. She stopped using all substances, including alcohol, when she became pregnant. As a single teenage mother she worked and studied, eventually graduating in Psychology and Sociology. She wants to develop a project to help young mothers.

Kayleigh, a university graduate, described herself as a 'late starter' when it comes to drinking alcohol. She says that she didn't have a clue about how much to drink when she was a teenager and would get too drunk. She thinks that health professionals should make women more aware of risks to the baby that drinking alcohol has during pregnancy.

Tara was diagnosed with depression in her teens and she also developed what she described as cannabis-induced psychosis. She started using cannabis and other drugs at thirteen. At that age she got involved in a bad and abusive relationship with someone older than her.

Hayley lives in a small village and thinks that the reason why young people drink alcohol and/or do drugs there is because they are bored and there is nothing else for them to do. She thinks that the situation would be improved if there were other activities like youth centres or the cinema (with tickets at a reduced price) available. She also thinks better communication between parents and their teenage children would help.

Lauren used to binge drink every weekend with friends as a teenager. Now she drinks with friends a few times a month but not to get drunk. She has realised that alcohol and cannabis don't solve problems.

When Alex was 15, he and his Dad started sharing the odd beer together. His dad was trying to teach him to drink sensibly. He thinks that young people drink so much in the UK because alcohol is cheap, and that there is not nearly enough information about the health risks of drinking.

Bekky started drinking alcohol at thirteen with friends because she felt pressure to join in, but now she hardly drinks at all. She is worried that drinking alcohol could have a bad impact on her health, and thinks that young people need to be given more information about what can go wrong.

Emily's parents let her drink alcohol in the house, under their supervision. She thinks this has helped her learn how to drink in moderation.

At the age of 23 Daniel realised that he was an alcoholic and decided to ask for help. In early 2006 Daniel was diagnosed with drug and alcohol addiction. Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), meditation and his religion have all helped him recover from his alcohol and substance dependency. He wants to train as a counsellor.