RESOURCES
NEWS & ANNOUNCEMENTS: ARCHIVE
Our news & announcements offer up-to-date information important and relative for us to share with you. We update often, so check back frequently. Past news and announcements are available in this archive.
05/08/2009 - Adolescent Substance Misuse
It has been almost one year since we last discussed prescription drug misuse in teens. Misuse is defined as the nonmedical use of a prescription drug without a doctor’s prescription for the purpose of self-medication (using the drug to obtain the intended benefit of that drug) and for recreational use (to get high).
Eric Twombley, Ph.D. writes in The Journal of Primary Prevention that in 2006, there were as many new abusers of prescription drugs as new abusers of marijuana. These drugs include pain relievers or opioids (Lortab and Oxycontin), stimulants (Ritalin), and anti-anxiety drugs (Valium and Xanax).
The data reveals that usage rates are consistently between 8th and 12th grades and the most likely user is female, Caucasian, and in her late teens.
Misconceptions abound, such as 40% of teens agree that prescription drugs are much safer to use than illegal drugs, even without a prescription. Close to 1/3 of teenagers say that prescription pain killers are ‘not addictive’.
Males were twice as likely as females to use prescription drugs to ‘get high’. Over 60% of teens report that prescription drugs are easy to obtain from parent’s medicine cabinets, or from friends who share these drugs prompting the belief that self-medication is normal and safe.
Effective approaches to limit prescription drug misuse are limited, however parent education on their role in understanding the risks of misuse, and to stop allowing these drugs to be available in their medicine cabinet are important. The schools could also help by providing specific educational programs that provide accurate information on the risks and hazards of prescription drug misuse from a scientific perspective.
In my private practice of Addiction Medicine, prescription drug misuse is the most prevalent presentation in adult and adolescent patient populations. Neither group live in a vacuum, however it is our job to dispel the myths and misconceptions by providing educational and medical truths in a non-judgmental, non-critical way. Prevention, treatment, and recovery begin with acceptance of accurate information. It is our responsibility to provide this information.