Teen Drug Addiction Statistics

Teen drug addiction statistics show that parents may not realize just how available illicit drugs are to their children. They may not realize how young children are when they begin to experiment with alcohol and drugs. Teen drug addiction statistics can be sobering, and can alert parents to the need to communicate with their children about the dangers of substance abuse and help them develop strategies to cope with peer pressure.

Current teen drug addiction statistics report underage drinking costs the United States more than $58 billion every year. 40 percent of those who started drinking at age 13 or younger developed alcohol dependence later in life. Ten percent of teens who began drinking after the age of 17 developed dependence. Teens that drink are 50 times more likely to use cocaine than teens who never consume alcohol.

Other teen drug addiction statistics show that ten percent of teens report that they have attended a rave, and ecstasy and other drugs were available at more than two-thirds of these raves. 63 percent of the youth who drink alcohol say that they initially got the alcohol from their own or their friend's homes. Alcohol kills 6 and a half times more teenagers than all other illicit drugs combined.

When it comes to teen drug addiction statistics, teenagers whose parents talk to them on a regular basis about the dangers of drug use are 42 percent less likely to use drugs than those whose parents don't. More than 60 percent of teens said that drugs were sold, used, or kept at their school. 20 percent of 8th graders report that they have tried marijuana. 28 percent of teens know a classmate or friend who has used ecstasy.

United States teen drug addiction statistics reveal the State with the highest rate of past month use of alcohol among youths aged 12 to 17 was North Dakota (24.7 percent). The State with the lowest rate was Utah (10.3 percent). Most of the States in the highest ranked group were northern, while most of the States in the lowest ranked group were southern. Nine of the States in the highest ranked group for past month binge use of alcohol for youths were also in the highest group for past month use of alcohol.

There was a strong negative correlation at the State level between prevalence of past month use of alcohol and perceived risk of alcohol use. In other words, those States with the highest prevalence rate for past month alcohol use were the same States that had the lowest perceived risk of alcohol use. Similarly, States with high rates of reporting great risk in having five or more drinks of an alcoholic beverage once or twice a week tended to have low rates of alcohol use. The State reporting the highest rate of this type of perceived risk was Utah (51.5 percent of youths). Most of the States reporting high rates of risk among youths were southern. Seven States that reported the highest rates of great risk were the same ones in the lowest category for past month alcohol use.

Teen drug addiction statistics show that among persons who first initiated alcohol use in 1995 to 1997 at age 25 or younger, the average age at first use ranged from 14.8 years old in Montana to 16.5 years in the District of Columbia. The national average age of first alcohol use in this group was 15.7 years old. Of the 10 States in the lowest quintile for age at first use, only five-Montana, Colorado, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming-were also in the highest prevalence group for past month use of alcohol among youths.

Teen drug addiction statistics finds that parents and families face one of the most difficult battles in today's society - that of raising drug free children. Communication is one of the most powerful tools we have at our disposal in keeping our kids off drugs. Yet for some reason, it is the most feared, and is seldom used. We as parents, educators, and supportive organizations, must set the tone, set the standards, and set the societal norm. We must talk to our children on a continuing basis about the dangers of drugs, and be active participants in their lives. Together we can change the face of drug addiction in our communities.