Many people abuse drugs and others often wonder why. Social pressure is one reason--if their friends abuse drugs, teenagers may feel they must take drugs to fit in. Psychiatric issues such as depression and stress can trigger drug use. Genetic predisposition and environmental impact also play a role. If their parents abused drugs, teenagers or adult children are more likely to abuse drugs.
Peer Pressure
According to psychiatrist Esther Gwinnell, M.D., in her book, "The Encyclopedia of Drug Abuse," peer pressure is a powerful influence among adolescents, and in many cases, a teenager first tries a drug because it was given by a friend. Dr. Gwinnell notes this risk can be mitigated by parents talking to their children about the dangers of drugs in causing car crashes, assaults and unplanned pregnancies. She also recommends teachers talk about tactics to resist peer pressure to use drugs. Peer pressure is also a factor among adults, which is why many adults must give up their drug-using friends to avoid returning to drugs.
Depression
Depressed people have more than double the risk for using illegal drugs. According to Dr. Gwinnell, research has shown that among individuals who experienced a depressive episode in the past year, about 30 percent used an illegal drug. In contrast, among those not depressed, about 14 percent used an illicit drug.
Genetic Predispositions and Environmental Factors
Researchers have identified genetic risks toward using drugs in adoptee studies. For example, if an adopted person has a birth parent who abuses drugs, even when the child is raised by adoptive parents who do not abuse drugs, the adoptee has a greater risk for using drugs than others.
Environmental factors are also significant. For example, according to David B. Newlin and colleagues, if an adoptee is raised by an alcoholic adoptive father, the child has an elevated risk for drug abuse and dependence rather than alcohol abuse and alcoholism. Yet if the adoptee is raised by an alcoholic adoptive mother, the adopted child has an elevated risk for alcohol abuse.The reasons for these findings are unknown.
Many children live with drug or alcohol-abusing parents, and according to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, in 2007, more than seven million children--about 10 percent of all children--lived with a parent who abused alcohol or was an alcoholic. In addition, more than 2 million children--3 percent of all children--lived with a parent who abused or depended on illegal drugs.
Stress
Susan L. Andersen, Ph.D., and Martin H. Teicher, M.D., Ph D., of Harvard Medical School, reported in 2009 that early exposure to stress can predispose an individual to abuse substances at a younger age than typically seen. For example, they point to research indicating that past physical and sexual abuse raises the risk 12-fold of marijuana use by age 10. They hypothesize early stress may affect part of the brain, making it more vulnerable to stressors. They also note stress is the primary factor leading to relapse in those who are drug users.
Adverse Childhood Events
The Adverse Childhood Experiences Study, managed by Robert F. Anda, M.D., at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or CDC, and Vincent J. Felitti, M.D., of Kaiser Permanente, found that adverse childhood experiences, or ACEs, such as recurrent child abuse may lead to drug abuse. Some examples of ACEs that occur before age 18, include experiencing recurrent physical, sexual or emotional abuse, living with an alcoholic or drug-abusing household member, living with a mother treated violently, and experiencing emotional or physical neglect. Extensive research by Dr Anda and colleagues on 17,000 adults has demonstrated the greater the number of childhood ACEs, the higher the risk for adult drug abuse.
In a study by Shanta R. Dube, M.P.H., and colleagues, published in "Pediatrics" in 2003, the researchers found those with five or more ACES had a seven to 10 times greater risk of using illicit drugs or becoming addicted to drugs than subjects with no ACEs.
References
- "Encyclopedia of Drug Abuse"; Esther Gwinnell, M.D. and Christine Adamec; 2008
- "Pediatrics"; Childhood Abuse, Neglect, and Household Dysfunction and the Risk of Illicit Drug Use: The Adverse Childhood Experiences Study; Shanta R. Dube, MPH, et al.; March 2003
- "Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews": Deperately Driven and No Brakes: Developmental Stress Exposure and Subsequent Risk for Substance Abuse; Susan L. Andersen and Martin H. Teicher; 2009
- "Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research"; Environmental Transmissons of DSM-IV Substance Use Disorders in Adoptive and Step Families; David B. Newlin, et al.; December 2000
- NSDUH Report: Children Living with Substance-Dependent or Substance-Abusing Parents: 2002 to 2007
