Why Should I Care About School Based Prevention? Drug Use Is On the Decline, Right?

Why Should I Care About School Based Prevention? Drug Use Is On the Decline, Right?

Addiction is a developmental disorder that begins in adolescence, sometimes as early as childhood, for which effective prevention is critical.¹ Addiction is complex and influenced by a number of factors, including genetics, environment and age of first use.² According to studies by the National Institute on Drug Abuse and the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, the younger a person first uses drugs or alcohol, the greater the likelihood that they will become dependent and/or addicted to drugs and alcohol as an adult.³ For these reasons, it is critical to stop drug use before it stops. Continuing to fund school based prevention such as the State Grants portion of the SDFSC program is one of the best ways to ensure this happens, while at the same time securing the health and academic success of students throughout the country.
 

Drug Use Is On the Decline, Right?

While overall youth drug use among youth has decreased by 25% over the last seven years (2001-2008), when Monitoring the Future Survey data is disaggregated, we are beginning to see disturbing trends, as attitudes are softening.
 
For example, every time a red box appears in the chart on the left, it means that fewer youth believe the drugs are dangerous and/or disapprove of their use.
 

Why Is This a Problem?

This is a problem because research demonstrates that softening attitudes generally precede an increase in drug use rates by approximately two years.

According to the latest MTF data, past 30 day use of marijuana has already eclipsed that of tobacco among 10th graders.

¹Quote by Dr. Nora Volkow, Director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse
²National Institute on Drug Abuse. (2008). Reducing the public Health Burden of Substance Abuse. Bethesda, MD.
³National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. (2006). Underage Drinking A Growing Healthcare Concern. Available: www.pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/PSA/underagepg2.htm. The National Household Survey on Drug Abuse (NHSDA) report. August 23, 2002. Available: www.oas.samhsa.gov/2k2/MJ&dependence/MJdependence.htm