Teen drug abuse goes beyond alcohol and marijuana. Today, all it takes for many teens to be able to get high is to take a look through their parents’ medical cabinets, and many parents are unaware that their kids may be taking advantage of seemingly harmless prescription bottles at home. Kids as young as 12 and 13 abuse prescription medications at higher rates than other drugs. These adolescents often don’t realize all the dangers of prescription drugs because they are not illegal and are prescribed by doctors. Prescription drugs don’t have the same stigmas of danger as drugs like heroin or cocaine.
Prescription Drug Abuse in Teens
Teens report using prescription drugs often for reasons of convenience. 62% of teens who used prescription drugs reported that the drugs were easy to get from their parent’s homes, while 50% reported that these drugs are easy to get from other people’s prescriptions. It seems that teens are simply using the drugs that are easiest for them to get, and today that means prescription drugs.
Additionally, teens report using prescription drugs because they have the false assumption that these drugs are less dangerous than other drugs. In fact, 35% of teens said they think prescription drugs are less dangerous than illegal drugs, and 51% said they believe these drugs are less dangerous. Teens turn to prescription drugs because they are easy to get and because they don’t think these drugs will cause serious harm.
Teen Drug Abuse Prevention
Teens use prescription drugs on the basis that they are easy to procure and on the belief that they aren’t dangerous. In order to prevent teens from abusing these drugs, it’s important to educate them on the true risks involved with abusing prescription drugs so that they understand that these drugs can be every bit as dangerous as illegal drugs when abused.
IF YOU SUSPECT YOUR TEEN OF EXPERIMENTING WITH DRUGS OR ALCOHOL, WE PROVIDE ACCURATE AND CONFIDENTIAL DRUG TESTING. CALL (816) 800-9699 OR CONTACT TEST SMARTLY LABSTODAY. YOU CAN MAKE AN APPOINTMENT AT ANY OF OUR 4 KANSAS CITY AREA LOCATIONS.
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