MANY children who call Childline have drink or drugs problems, according to the ISPCC. But it says that few callers identify these as the actual problem.
"For many children, however, underlying emotional problems are compounded by addiction becoming a problem in itself," it says.
In the past eight years, Childline, the ISPCC service, has received just over half a million calls, of which 70,000 one in seven - related to child abuse, according to figures launched yesterday to mark the eighth year of the service.
Last year, 10,300 of the 113,600 calls received were about child abuse. Of these, 5,300 were about sexual abuse.
"In 1995, calls related to bullying continued to represent 5 per cent of all Childline calls," it says.
The ISPCC's chief executive Mr Cian O Tighearnaigh renewed his calls for the mandatory reporting by teachers, counsellors and others of all child abuse claims.
A discussion document on the topic has been promised for some time by the Minister of State for Health, Mr Austin Currie.
The ISPCC is to issue posters dealing with the problems of bullying and drugs. "Childline receives a large number of calls about bullying, helps children with their feelings, offers strategies for being safe and explores ways of keeping school safe," Mr O Tighearnaigh said.
He said the service dealt in a non judgmental way with drink and drugs problems, giving children the information and confidence to make choices and identify that most emotional problems are exacerbated and doubled by addiction."