According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, published by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 9.3 percent of adolescents ages 12 to 17 were current users of one or more illegal drugs in 2008. Most--about seven percent--were current users of marijuana, whereas about three percent abused prescription drugs. Alcohol is another common drug abused by adolescents.
Teenage drug abuse affects not only adolescents but also their families, friends and sometimes total strangers. Teenagers who drive while impaired risk causing a car crash and harming themselves and others. Girls who abuse alcohol and drugs are more likely to have unprotected sex, contract sexually transmitted diseases and have unplanned pregnancies. Adolescents who abuse drugs are more likely to be depressed and engage in violent behavior. Adolescents are also at risk for using drugs to attempt suicide.
Car Accidents
In 2008, according to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 7.2 percent of drivers ages 16-17 years admitted to driving while under the influence of alcohol during the previous year. It is unknown what percentage of these drivers were involved in car crashes, but their odds of an accident were clearly elevated. Teenagers often refuse to wear seat belts, further increasing the likelihood of a serious outcome if they are in a car crash.
Casual Sex Consequences
In a study of Tennessee children in sixth to eighth grades by Michael S. Dunn, Ph.D., professor at East Tennessee State University, and colleagues in their 2008 article for the Journal of School Health, about half the adolescents who said they had initiated sexual intercourse reported using illegal drugs such as inhalants and marijuana. In addition, 75 percent of the sexually active teens had engaged in smoking and drinking. Early sex is linked to teenage pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Protection, CDC, more than a third of sexually active high school students did not use a condom during sex in 2009. The CDC reports that by the time they were in high school, 14 percent of teenagers engaging in sex already had four or more sex partners. The CDC reports more than 50 percent of adolescents infected with the human immunodeficiency virus--HIV--have not been tested for HIV. As a result, they will likely spread the infection to other teens.
Depression
According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 2 million adolescents ages 12 to 17 years experienced a major depressive episode in the past year. Drug use often accompanied a major depressive episode among adolescents who abused drugs. For example, among adolescents ages 12 to 17 years with a major depressive episode in 2008, 37.4 percent had used illegal drugs in the past year.
Delinquent and Violent Behavior
The National Survey for Drug Use and Health reports adolescents ages 12 to 17 years old who were delinquent or engaged in fighting were more likely to have used illegal drugs in the past month. For example, in 2008, nearly 40 percent of adolescents who had stolen or attempted to steal an item had used illegal drugs in the past month.
Drug-Related Suicide Attempts
Of adolescents who go to hospital emergency rooms for drug-related suicide attempts, in 95 percent of cases one or more legal and illegal drugs were identified, according to the DAWN Report published by the Substance and Mental Health Services Administration. For example, more than a quarter of the adolescents--26.2 percent--used anti-anxiety drugs, whereas 23 percent used antidepressants. Alcohol was a factor--by itself or combined with other drugs--in 11.4 percent of the cases. About 11 percent used illegal drugs and most abused marijuana.
There were some distinctive sex differences. For example, none of the boys who attempted suicide had taken either anti-anxiety drugs or antidepressants. However, boys were more likely than girls to abuse illicit drugs, or 12.8 percent of boys compared with 7.3 percent of girls.
References
- "Encyclopedia of Drug Abuse"; Esther Gwinnell, M.D. and Christine Adamec; 2008
- "Results from the 2008 National Survey on Drug Use and Health: National Findings: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
- DAWN Report: Emergency Department Visits for Drug-Related Suicide Attempts, 2008
- "Journal of School Health"; Self-Reported Substance Use and Sexual Behaviors among Adolescents in a Rural State; Michael S. Dunn, Ph.D., et al; October 15, 2008
- CDC: Healthy Youth! Sexual Risk Behaviors
