Hospital Treats 3-Year-Old Alcoholic

If you were truly disturbed by the chain-smoking toddler like I was, prepare yourself for this: a 3-year-old has been treated for alcoholism at a British hospital, the UK’s Telegraph reports. The child, the youngest in Britain to be treated for alcohol addiction, entered treatment after being given alcohol regularly for six months.

Plus: Most Controversial Parenting Stories of 2010

What’s even sadder? This shocking story isn’t an isolated case. Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals in England recently revealed that in the past five years, they have treated 165 children under 17 for drinking and drug problems—four of whom were only 5 years old.

Plus: Best and Worst Parenting Moments of 2010

How does this happen? I can only hope that the children in these heartbreaking cases received proper treatment, and are on the road to recovery.