Drug Education

Despite a downturn in adolescent drug use over the past several decades, the level of adolescent consumption has remained relatively high. Schools, families, and communities continue to seek out new methods to effectively prevent adolescent drug use. Research has linked drug use among teens with self-degradation, teen suicide, loss of control, disruptive conduct, antisocial behavior, high-risk sexual activities, and psychological disorders. The National Survey of American Attitudes on Substance Abuse, an ongoing 7-year publication, concluded that drug use and its social, psychological, and physical impact is the number one concern of teens and their parents.

The 2003 National Survey on Drug Use and Health reported that 51.1% of 12th graders use an illicit drug at least once during their lifetime, and 30.5% of 12- to 17-year-olds use an illicit drug at least once during their lifetime. Marijuana is the most widely used drug, with 40.2% of high school students using it during their lifetime. The national survey clearly indicates that teen drug use is still prominent in our culture and is a major public health risk.

The percentage of youths that felt it was easy to obtain marijuana dropped from 55.0% to 53.6% from 2002 to 2003. There was also a decline from 19.4% to 17.6% of youths who reported that it would be easy to obtain LSD. According to a 2003 study by the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University (CASA), 5 million 12- to 17- year-olds can buy marijuana in an hour or less, and another 5 million can buy marijuana in a 24-hour period.

The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse and the American Legacy Foundation reported a strong correlation between cigarette smoking and marijuana use. Their study of 1,987 teens concluded that reducing cigarette smoking by 50% among teens would cut marijuana use by 16% to 28%.

A 2003 CASA study of 1,987 teens aged 12–17 and 504 parents revealed that teens who are highly stressed, frequently bored, or have substantial amounts of spending money are three times more likely to smoke, drink, get drunk, and use illegal drugs. The survey also reported a correlation between school size and drug use. Students who attend a school with more than 1,200 students were twice as likely to be at high risk for substance abuse than students who attended schools with less than 800 students. Eighteen percent of students also reported that drugs were sold, kept, or used at their high schools.

A 1996 study of 1,363 10th-grade students by Ron Hays and Phyllis Erickson cited the contrasting nature of teens who consume alcohol versus teen drug users. The study indicated that alcohol use and misuse were associated with social activities, while use of hard drugs, marijuana, and cigarettes was associated with theft, burglary, and running away from home. The Drug Policy Research Center followed up this study in 1998 by surveying 4,390 high school seniors and dropouts. They concluded that as many as two thirds of these students may be misusing alcohol (feeling sick, missing school, fighting, arrest, engaging in high-risk alcohol behaviors). Given the high prevalence of alcohol use, and short-lived effects of schoolbased prevention programs, they recommended that efforts should be focused on curbing alcohol misuse.

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