Substance Use Issues for Youth/Young Adults
The following article includes a summary of various issues pertinent to youth and young adults that cover prevalence, parental attitudes and expectations, and information about synthetic “legal” drugs available online or in “smoke” shops.
Prevalence: According to the 2009 Partnership Attitude
Tracking Study, sponsored by MetLife Foundation, the number of teens in grades
9-12 that used alcohol in the past month has grown by 11 percent, (from 35
percent in 2008 to 39 percent in 2009), past year Ecstasy use shows a 67
percent increase (from 6 percent in 2008 to 10 percent in 2009) and past year
marijuana use shows a 19 percent increase (from 32 percent in 2008 to 38
percent in 2009).
Underlying these increases are negative shifts in teen attitudes, particularly
a growing belief in the benefits and acceptability of drug use and drinking.
The percentage of teens agreeing that "being high feels good"
increased significantly from 45 percent in 2008 to 51 percent in 2009, while
those saying that "friends usually get high at parties" increased
from 69 percent to 75 percent over the same time period.
The Partnership/ MetLife Foundation Attitude Tracking Study (PATS) also found a
significant drop in the number of teens agreeing strongly that they "don't
want to hang around drug users" - from 35 percent in 2008 to 30 percent in
2009.
No Improvement in Teen Abuse of Rx and OTC Medicines,
Cigarettes, Inhalants, Steroids, Heroin: According to the PATS survey, teen abuse of prescription (Rx) and
over-the-counter (OTC) medicines has remained stable with about 1 in 5 teens in
grades 9-12 (20 percent) or 3.2 million reporting abuse of a prescription
medication at least once in their lives, and 1 in 7 teens (15
percent) or 2.4 million teens reporting abuse of a prescription pain reliever
in the past year.
Eight percent or 1.3 million teens have reported OTC cough medicine abuse in
the past year.
PATS shows more than half or 56 percent of teens in grades 9-12 believe Rx
drugs are easier to get than illegal drugs.
Also, 62 percent believe most teens get Rx drugs from their own family's medicine
cabinets and 63 percent believe Rx drugs are easy to get from their
parent's medicine cabinet, up significantly from 56 percent just last year.
Teen smoking rates have remained stable with 25 percent of teens reporting
smoking cigarettes in the past month. Teen inhalant use remains steady at 10
percent for past year use, yet only 66 percent of teens report that
"sniffing or huffing things to get high can kill you," significantly
less than the 70 percent of teens who agreed just last year. Inhalant abuse
merits careful monitoring - as attitudes towards inhalant abuse weaken, abuse
is more likely to increase.
Steroid and heroin use among teens remains low at 5 percent for lifetime use.
Parenting attitudes and actions can make
a big difference in how much and how often a teenager drinks: Researchers at
Brigham Young University surveyed 5,000 adolescents about their drinking habits
and their relationship with their parents.
They found the kids least prone to heavy drinking had parents who scored high
on accountability (knowing where their kids were and with whom) and warmth.
Having so-called "indulgent" parents, who were low on accountability
and high on warmth, nearly tripled the risk of the teen participating in heavy
drinking.
The study also found that "strict" parents -- high on accountability
and low on warmth -- more than doubled their teen's risk of heavy drinking.
These results were apparent even when researchers controlled for other
influences, such as peer pressure, religious and economic background.
Our data suggest that peer encouragement to drink might have less impact when
parents are both highly supportive and highly attentive.
The study is published in the July issue of the Journal of Studies on Alcohol
and Drugs.
Parental Expectations: The more parents expect
their teens to engage in risky behaviors such as drinking and using drugs, the
more likely their teens are to follow through with those behaviors, Reuters
reported Oct. 16.
Researchers found that adolescents with mothers who expected them to be more
rebellious and take greater risks reported higher levels of risky behavior than
other adolescents during follow-up surveys.
On the other hand, parents may lower the rate of risky behavior among their
adolescent children by expecting that they can resist negative peer pressure
and instead engage in positive behavior, according to the study.
"Parents who believe they are simply being realistic might actually
contribute to a self-fulfilling prophecy," said study author and Wake
Forest University psychology professor Christy Buchanan.
"By thinking risk-taking or rebelliousness is normal for teenagers and
conveying that to their children, parents might add to other messages from
society that make teenagers feel abnormal if they are not willing to take risks
or break laws."
The study's recommendations for parents included modeling good behavior for
their teens, exposing them to examples of positive things that other teens are
doing, and making sure their teens know there are consequences to risky
behavior.
The study was based on surveys of more than 200 6th- and 7th-graders and their
mothers and was published in the June 2009 issue of the Journal of Research on
Adolescence.
Synthetic Drugs – Trends and Risks:
By JIM SALTER and JIM SUHR, Associated Press Jim Salter And Jim Suhr, Associated Press – Wed Apr 6, 5:57 pm ET
INDIANOLA, Iowa – Until he tried a marijuana look-alike product called "K2," David Rozga's most dubious decision was getting a Green Bay Packers tattoo on his shoulder.
Then the 18-year-old athlete and band standout got high on the fake pot last June and complained to a friend "that he felt like he was in hell," his father said.
Though he had never suffered from depression, the teenager went home, found a shotgun and killed himself — one of at least nine U.S. deaths in the last year that authorities suspect were caused by synthetic products designed to mimic marijuana, cocaine and other illegal drugs.
An Associated Press analysis shows that the substances are increasingly causing users to fall seriously ill, with some suffering seizures and hallucinations.
Available in many head shops for as little as $10, the synthetic drugs are often packaged as incense or bath salts, but they do nothing to perfume the air or soften water.
As more Americans experiment with them, the results are becoming evident at hospitals: a sharp spike in the number of users who show up with problems ranging from labored breathing and rapid heartbeats to extreme paranoia and delusions. The symptoms can persist for days.
"These kids weren't looking for anything bad to happen," Mike Rozga said of his son's death. "The truth is they didn't know what they had gotten themselves into."
At the request of the AP, the American Association of Poison Control Centers analyzed nationwide figures on calls related to synthetic drugs. The findings showed an alarming increase in the number of people seeking medical attention.
At least 2,700 people have fallen ill since January, compared with fewer than 3,200 cases in all of 2010. At that pace, medical emergencies related to synthetic drugs could go up nearly fivefold by the end of the year.
"Many of the users describe extreme paranoia," said Dr. Mark Ryan, director of the Louisiana Poison Center. "The recurring theme is monsters, demons and aliens. A lot of them had suicidal thoughts."
The recent surge in activity has not gone unnoticed by law enforcement and elected officials.
The Drug Enforcement Administration recently used emergency powers to outlaw five chemicals found in synthetic pot, placing them in the same category as heroin and cocaine.
But manufacturers are quick to adapt, often cranking out new formulas that are only a single molecule apart from the illegal ones.
On Wednesday, the Senate's Caucus on International Narcotics Control held a hearing in Washington to discuss curbing the growth of synthetics.
"This is a whole new method of trafficking," testified Joseph T. Ranznazzisi, deputy assistant administrator in the DEA's office of diversion control. "We've never experienced this before, when the product is just on the shelf."
Rozga implored lawmakers to act swiftly to prevent more deaths: "We are not doing enough, and we are not moving quickly enough."
Recreational drugs created in the laboratory have been around at least since the middle of the 20th century, when LSD was first studied. But these latest examples emerged only a few years ago, starting in Europe.
The products were typically made in China, India and other Asian nations and soon arrived in Britain and Germany, according to DEA spokesman Rusty Payne.
In the United States, fake marijuana was last year's big seller, marketed under brands such as "K2" or "Spice." This year, the trend is "bath salts" with names like "Purple Wave" and "Bliss."
Besides being cheap and easily obtained, they do not show up in common drug tests.
Synthetic marijuana typically involves dried plant material sprayed with one of several chemical compounds, most of which were created by a Clemson University scientist for research purposes in the 1990s. The compounds were never tested on humans.
It's packaged to look like pot, and users typically smoke it, but experts say the high is more comparable to cocaine or LSD.
The bath salts are crystalized chemicals that are snorted, swallowed or smoked. They contain two powerful stimulants: methylenedioxypyrovalerone (or MDPV) and mephedrone, which mimic cocaine, LSD and methamphetamine.
So far in 2011, poison control centers have received nearly 1,300 calls about synthetic pot, compared with 2,874 calls for all of last year, according to the poison control center data.
Poison calls for bath salts rose at an even greater rate. The centers took 301 calls in all of 2010, but had more than 1,400 for the first three months of 2011. Most of the calls came from doctors and nurses reporting patients in emergency rooms.
"The problem is really exploding here," said Dr. Elizabeth Scharman, director of the West Virginia Poison Center. Her state had three cases of bath-salt poisoning in December.
"We've had 131 cases since Jan. 1," and one-third of those were within the past two weeks, she said late last month. A law banning bath salts and synthetic marijuana was signed Tuesday by acting Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin.
Physicians generally treat the overdoses with anti-anxiety medication such as Valium and Xanax, which ease the frenetic, drug-fueled activity in the brain and body.
"They cut back on the hallucinations, slow the heart rate, lower the blood pressure. It can take large doses. It can take repeated doses," Scharman said.
In some patients, symptoms can last for days.
"One described it as like being on cocaine, but 10 times worse," said Anna Rouse Dulaney of the Carolinas Poison Center in Charlotte, N.C.
DEA agent Gary Boggs said users assume that the products are safe because they are available in stores, even though they are typically labeled "not for human consumption."
"These products are in an unregulated, unlicensed industry," Boggs said. "No one knows the strength of the ingredients. You don't know what you're taking."
In addition to the DEA's recently adopted ban, a federal law allows for prosecution of "analogue" drugs that mimic the effects of illegal substances.
But authorities acknowledge the challenge of stopping the drugs' spread. DEA experts are evaluating as many as 50 new synthetics.
"The possibilities are endless," Boggs said. "There's probably hundreds of formulations out there."
At least 20 states have banned chemicals found in fake marijuana, according to a report from the National Conference of State Legislatures compiled for the AP. Most others have legislation pending.
At least nine states have banned substances found in bath salts, and 25 have laws in the works.
Lawmakers know they're fighting an uphill battle.
"These chemists are pretty sophisticated and creative and are going to stay one step ahead of us, I'm afraid," said Kentucky state Rep. John Tilley, a Democrat who sponsored his state's ban on drug-infused bath salts.
Some head shop owners see all the alarm as an overreaction.
In Des Moines, Iowa, near Drake University, the Day Dreams shop has found the synthetic marijuana "Spice" to be a proven money-maker. Along with incense, hippie clothing and drug paraphernalia, the store has sold thousands of packets of the crumbly, brownish-green leaves. Many of the packages are displayed behind the counter as a safeguard against shoplifting.
Contrary to DEA claims that the product is most popular among teens and college-age customers, co-owner Kathy Fiedler said two-thirds of her buyers are middle-aged.
"I even have grandmothers coming in," said Fiedler, 56.
If Iowa lawmakers adopt a ban, she said, they risk opening the door to shady backroom chemists crafting far more dangerous things.
Reports of misuse are widespread.
In Kentucky, authorities say a young woman driving on a highway after using bath salts became convinced her 2-year-old was a demon. She allegedly stopped the car and dropped the child on his head. He survived and was taken from his mother's custody.
A Hawaii man pleaded guilty to attacking his girlfriend and trying to throw her off an 11th-floor balcony while high on "Spice."
In January, a Fulton, Miss., man who hallucinated after taking bath salts used a hunting knife to slit his face and stomach.
And in March, a 19-year-old man named Trevor Robinson-Davis died in suburban Minneapolis after overdosing at a party on a synthetic drug called 2C-E, a "cousin" to a banned rave-party drug. Ten others at the party became ill.
Back in Indianola, David Rozga's parents said their son had been active in his church and was preparing to start college in the fall. He loved the Green Bay Packers so much he had Brett Favre's No. 4 tattooed on his shoulder.
"We said at the time, `If this was the worst thing he ever did, we did a pretty good job.' Unfortunately, it wasn't," Mike Rozga said.
Sen. Charles Grassley, an Iowa Republican, introduced a measure bearing the younger Rozga's name that would permanently ban five chemicals used in synthetic marijuana products.
Jan Rozga hopes the law will be her son's legacy.
"I did not stop being David's mother when he died," she said. "I still feel very protective over him, what happened to him, and I want to right that wrong for him."
Resource Information
timetoact.drugfree.org - offers step by step advice and compassionate guidance to help families
addictioninfo.org - lots of articles regarding youth issues and substance abuse.
Effective Addiction Treatment: The Minnesota Alternative is now available and can be purchased at Amazon.
MnAlternatives on Facebook
MnAlternatives on Twitter
MnAlternatives RSS feed