A new survey seems to be the carrier of both good news and bad news. The good news is that teens that drink alcohol and smoke cigarettes are on the decline. The bad news is that marijuana use by teens is on the rise.
The Coalition for a Drug-Free Greater Cincinnati has conducted a survey of almost 57,000 students from 107 different schools, and found that peer disapproval of alcohol, tobacco, and marijuana use have caused the habits to decline between 25 percent and 50 percent since the year 2000.
The survey has found that in the Tri-State area, 95.7 percent of the teens surveyed do not use prescription drugs non-medically, 90.2 percent do not use cigarettes, 88.6 percent do not use marijuana, and 82.2 percent do not use alcohol.
Additionally, since 2000, alcohol use in teens surveyed declined by 41 percent, tobacco use declined by 53 percent, and marijuana use declined by 24 percent. Since 2004, parental disapproval of the habits has heightened by 8 to 12 percent, while peer disapproval has heightened by 30-50 percent. Since 2012, prescription drug use has declined by 34 percent
Furthermore, only 17.8 percent of teens surveyed said they had used alcohol during the last 30 days. Within the same time period, 9.8 percent admitted they had used cigarettes, while 11.4 percent admitted to using marijuana and 4.3 percent had used illicit prescription drugs.
However, despite the apparent good news, the statistics also indicate that there is a slight rise in marijuana use among teens, probably caused by shifting public opinion regarding the drug. That the drug is illegal in some states and legal in others, and still other states are pushing for legalization for medicinal purposes, is causing certain confusion in teens.
"It's like they're confused. They get mixed messages. It's illegal from a federal perspective and in the state of Ohio, Indiana, and Kentucky. But what we hear in the media is 'Let's legalize it, if not for medicinal purposes, then for medicinal use,'" said CDFGC president Mary Haag.
However, to combat alcohol, tobacco, marijuana or prescription drugs, the CDFGC has come up with certain strategies that may help teens steer clear of these unhealthy habits. Among the strategies are involving parents by having them set clear rules about use of alcohol and drugs and punishing children when rules are broken. Schools are also enjoined to set clear rules for alcohol or drug use. Teens attending religious services and participating in school and community activities may also prevent them from turning to these unhealthy habits.
The Coalition for a Drug-Free Cincinnati aims to create a drug-free environment for every child in the community. Among its missions is to build a, "community collaborative designed to integrate drug prevention from a public health approach."
