Teen Drug Use

The risk of teen drug use such as smoking, drinking and using illegal drugs increases sharply if they are highly stressed, frequently bored or have substantial amounts of spending money, according to The National Survey of American Attitudes on Substance Abuse VIII: Teens and Parents, an annual back-to-school survey conducted by The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) at Columbia University. This was the first time in its eight-year history that the survey measured the impact of these characteristics on the likelihood of teen drug use.

Among The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse survey findings:

High stress teens are twice as likely as low stress teens to smoke, drink, get drunk and use illegal drugs.
More than half the nation's 12-to-17 year olds (52 percent) are at greater risk of substance abuse because of high stress, frequent boredom, too much spending money, or some combination of these characteristics.
Often bored teens are 50 percent likelier than not often bored teens to smoke, drink, get drunk and use illegal drugs.
Teens exhibiting two or three of these characteristics are at more than three times the risk of substance abuse as those exhibiting none of these characteristics.
Teens with $25 or more a week in spending money are nearly twice as likely as teens with less to smoke, drink and use illegal drugs, and more than twice as likely to get drunk.

"High stress, frequent boredom and too much spending money are a catastrophic combination for many American teens," said CASA Chairman and President and former U.S. Secretary of Health, Education and Welfare Joseph A. Califano, Jr. "But it is a catastrophe that can be avoided through parental engagement. Parents must be sensitive to the stress in their children's lives, understand why they are bored and limit their spending money."

Other findings of this year's The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse survey on teen drug use:

For the first time in the survey's eight-year history, teens are as concerned about social and academic pressures as they are about drugs.
More than 5 million 12-to-17 year olds (20 percent) can buy marijuana in an hour or less; another 5 million (19 percent) can buy marijuana within a day.
Teens at schools with more than 1,200 students are twice as likely as teens at schools with less than 800 students to be at high risk of substance abuse (25 percent vs. 12 percent).
The proportion of teens that consider beer easier to buy than cigarettes or marijuana is up 80 percent from 2000 (18 percent vs. 10 percent).
Forty percent of U.S. teens claim they expect to use drugs at some point in the future.
One out of every five eighth graders has already tried marijuana.
The use of marijuana, inhalants and other similar substances can easily result in social consequences at school, at home, and out in the real world.
Use of substances such as marijuana and inhalants can result in physical consequences such as reduced energy, strength, stamina and fitness, and damage can be done to the lungs and brain.
Teens who smoke cigarettes are more likely to drink alcohol.
Teens that smoke and drink are more likely to use marijuana.
Teens that use all three are more likely to use other illicit drugs.
Long-term studies show that use of other illicit drugs among youth almost never occurs unless they have first used marijuana.

"Two of the most common questions regarding teen drug use and addiction are: how can it happen to my child, and how can it happen to young boys or girls who seem to be typical teens?" said Califano. "These questions are often asked where the drug-abusing teen does not exhibit one of the usual warning signs of drug abuse - being physically or sexually abused, having a learning disability or eating disorder, suffering from serious depression or another mental health condition. The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse teen drug use survey suggests that for many teens, the answers to these questions can be found in high stress, frequent boredom and too much spending money."