US teen drinking and smoking is lowest in 40 years, says study
Alcohol and cigarettes are a new no-no for most US teenagers, as compared to 40 years ago. However, the use of illicit drugs is still high, though it slightly lower than last year, according to a University of Michigan's Monitoring the Future program, released on Tuesday.
Perhaps peers don't preach it anymore! The survey was started in 1975, among 40,000 and 50,000 students in grades 8, 10 and 12 in 400 schools. Federal health officials have been using the survey to track data on youth substance abuse. The study finds that a new low has been reached this year, though the abuse has not been eliminated, according to sciencedaily.com.
"There is a lot of good news in this year's results, but the problems of teen substance use and abuse are still far from going away," said Lloyd Johnston, principal investigator of the study.
Only 41 percent of the teenagers included in the study have admitted to drinking, which is a dip from the 61 percent in 1997. There is a reduction even in "binge drinking", which would translate to mean consuming five or more drinks in a row, at least once in the two weeks before the survey. Although the investigators agree that it is an important development, roughly one in five, or 19 percent of the 12th graders record that they have indulged in binge drinking at least once in the earlier two weeks.
Just 8 percent of teens smoke, again a new low after the high of 28 percent in 1997.
However, doing away with drugs is far away. There is less use of some of the illicit drugs, including synthetic marijuana and ecstasy. However, heroin, cocaine and crystal methamphetamine remain constant in the past two years.
There are also mixed reports about the abuse of prescription drugs. The narcotic painkiller OxyContin, stimulants Ritalin and Adderall continue to lure teenagers, though both treat Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.
Even marijuana, the teen fad drug, has come down slightly, though not much, after five years. About 5.8 percent of high school seniors in 2014 reported using it everyday. But at least, it has reduced from the 6.5 percent use the previous year. This happens even though Colorado and Washington have legalized marijuana for recreational use, according to usatoday.com.
