Both adults and young people may attempt to deal with their stress, anxiety, depression, or other mental health issues through “self-medication.” “Self-medication” refers to the practice of using alcohol, legal, or illegal drugs without a doctor’s orders to deal with a problem. In addition, many young people, may incorrectly believe that prescription and/or over-the-counter drugs are a “safer” way to get high than illegal drugs.
Alcohol
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), alcohol is one of the most widely used drug substances in the world. Though legally not permitted to drink until age 21, many youth use and abuse alcohol. According to data from the CDC’s 2011 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance survey, 39% of high schools students report that they currently use alcohol, and 22% report episodic heavy or binge drinking (binge drinking is defined as 5 or more drinks on a single occasion for men or 4 or more drinks on a single occasion for women, generally within about 2 hours).
Underage drinking is a serious problem, not only because it is illegal but also because of its serious short and long term effects. In the short term, the use of alcohol among youth has been linked to physical fights, risky sexual behaviors, poor school and work performance, illegal behavior and an increased risk of fatal and nonfatal injuries, including car accidents. According to the CDC Youth Behavior Surveillance, in 2011 8% of high school students reported driving a car or other vehicle during the past 30 days when they had been drinking alcohol. Overall, alcohol is a factor in approximately 41% of all deaths from motor vehicle crashes.
In the long-term, regular alcohol use is associated with liver disease, cancer, cardiovascular disease, and neurological damage as well as psychiatric problems such as depression, anxiety, and antisocial personality disorder. Research has also shown that youth who use alcohol before age 15 are five times more likely to become alcohol dependent than adults who begin drinking at age 21. Excessive alcohol consumption is associated with approximately 75,000 deaths per year.
To learn more about alcohol use, abuse and strategies to help prevent underage drinking visit the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services websites for adults and teens.
Prescription Drugs
- According to Monitoring the Future, 7.4% of teens have reported the non-medical use of a prescription drug.
- Every day for the first time, an average of 2,000 teenagers use prescription drugs without a doctor’s guidance.
- 1 in 4 teenagers report that they have taken a prescription drug not prescribed to them by a doctor at least once in their lives.
- 20 percent of high school students have reported that they have taken a prescription drug without a doctor’s prescription.
To help educators and others address this problem, NEA HIN has developed Rx for Understanding, a standards-based teaching resource designed for use with middle-school students. Additional information about the problem of prescription drug abuse can be found at The Partnership at DrugFree.org and the National Council on Patient Information and Education.