Drug and alcohol use among teens continues to decline from its high of about a decade ago. That's the good news announced by the U.S. Office of National Drug Control Policy just in time for the new year. The declines since 2001 are as follows, according to the annual survey conducted by the University of Michigan:
- 15% drop in alcohol use (although it's still pretty high!)
- 24% drop in overall use of illegal drugs
- 25% drop in marijuana use
- 33% drop in steroid use
- 54% drop in Ecstasy
- 64% drop in methamphetamine
- 33% drop in cigarette smoking
On the other hand,
prescription drug abuse continues to increase. Since 2002, Oxycontin use has increased 30% among teens; Vicodin use also remains high.
Here are a few colorful slides illustrating the trends; the complete
report and
slide show are available online.
