Mothers who have used drugs may help keep their children from experimenting with drugs by talking to them about their experience, researchers in Canada said.

Lori Harach, a professor of human ecology at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, surveyed 3,530 Alberta students in grades 7-12.

The study found that if a parent doesn't talk about drugs to their children, their children were more likely to dabble with street drugs.

"The findings suggest that adolescents might benefit from parental talks about the dangers of drug use, especially when their mothers have experience with drugs," Harach said in a statement.

"That factor may give extra credibility to the messaging in the eyes of the teen."

Harach presented the findings at a conference organized by the Society for Research in Child Development.