Teen Drug Use Trends
September 13th 2007 04:08 pm
Not surprisingly, one of the leading teen drug use trends is abuse of prescription medication, including cough medicine and Ritalin. The numbers of teens reportedly abusing prescription medicines is more than the combined rates of teen abuse of crack/cocaine, methamphetamine, ecstasy and heroin. Adults have long been known to abuse prescription medication, even stealing and forging prescriptions to gain illegal access to the drugs. Thus, it is small wonder prescription meds have become a teen drug use trend.
Standard drugs like cocaine, methamphetamine and marijuana spiked in the 1970’s and are still popular today, though considerably less so. Parents should have honest, open conversations with young teens and pre-teens about the trends and why kids try them. This will not only potentially warn the teens off of destructive behavior, but also open open up a pathway of open, honest and constructive communication between parent and child. They may be more likely, therefore, to address questions about serious issues like drugs to their parent before their peers. This is a critical tool in the war on drugs. It starts at home. Research has repeatedly shown that learning about drugs and their dangers from parents cuts a child’s risk in half of trying to get high, having a drastic effect on the teen drug use trend.

