The Office of National Drug Control Policy calls prescription drug abuse “the Nation’s fastest growing drug problem.” The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has classified prescription drug abuse as an epidemic. The problem of prescription drug misuse and abuse is particularly alarming among young people.
Prescription and over-the-counter (OTC) drugs, after marijuana, alcohol, and tobacco, are the most commonly substances by Americans 14 and older. In fact, more teenagers are abusing prescription drugs than cocaine, heroin, and methamphetamine combined.
Every day in the United States, an average of 2,000 teenagers use prescription drugs without a doctor’s guidance for the first time. Nearly 15 percent of high-school seniors reported that they have used a prescription drug for reasons other than prescribed in the past year.
One of the most significant (and preventable) causes of prescription drug misuse and abuse among youths is a lack of knowledge and understanding about the importance of proper use. Forty-one percent of teens believe that it is safer to get high using a prescription drug than it is with a drug such as marijuana or cocaine.
Teenagers believe that since doctors give prescription drugs, they must be safe. We need to help build an understanding that this perceived safety is predicated on proper use. The objective of this resource is to change the way teens view prescription drugs, ensuring that they know the value of proper use and the dangers of misuse and abuse.