{"id":131,"date":"2008-06-25T03:00:37","date_gmt":"2008-06-25T08:00:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dontow.com\/wordpress\/?p=131"},"modified":"2009-11-27T21:57:26","modified_gmt":"2009-11-28T02:57:26","slug":"some-thoughts-on-the-youth-substance-abuse-issue","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.dontow.com\/2008\/06\/some-thoughts-on-the-youth-substance-abuse-issue\/","title":{"rendered":"Some Thoughts on the Youth Substance Abuse Issue"},"content":{"rendered":"
We are all concerned about the issue of substance abuse by our youths. By substance abuse, we are referring to drugs, alcohol, and cigarettes. According to the 2003 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH)[1]<\/a>:<\/p>\n The above survey shows that the size of the problem is large. For example:<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Furthermore, the consequences of the problems are also very large. These include problems with academics, health (including mental health), crimes, fights, accidents, alienation from peers and family members, employment, etc. For example, let\u2019s illustrate for the alcohol problem[4]<\/a>:<\/p>\n The youth substance abuse problems clearly have a toll on the American society, in terms of direct and indirect cost, quality of life, and community safety. These problems continue year after year, and in general the seriousness of the problem is not decreasing, and is often increasing. <\/p>\n How do we solve the above problems? Many methods have been proposed. For example, for the alcohol problem, the Underage Drinking Enforcement Training Center (UDETC)[5]<\/a> has proposed the following methods:<\/p>\n For the illicit drug use problem, analogous methods have been proposed.[6]<\/a> These are all useful methods in attacking the problem. However, I believe that there is one important factor that is not addressed by these methods. Children and young people observe and copy the behavior of adults, especially their adult family members. It is not what the adults say that is important, but what is most important is what the adults do. As long as there are serious substance abuse problems among the adult population, it will be extremely difficult, and possibly impossible, to solve the youth substance abuse problems.<\/p>\n Let\u2019s take a look at the corresponding statistics associated with the adult population in the U.S. (Some of the statistics mentioned below were deduced by me based on the statistics provided by the NSDUH and data from the U.S. Census Bureau.)<\/p>\n Thus we see that the percentages of drinkers and smokers for the adult population are significantly higher than the corresponding percentages of drinkers and smokers for the youth population (for this discussion, adults mean 21 and above for alcohol, and 18 and above for smoking, since 21 and 18 are respectively the legal drinking and smoking age in the U.S.). The percentage of illicit drug users for the adult population (for this discussion, meaning 18 and above) is still a substantial number, although smaller than the corresponding percentage for the youth population.<\/p>\n I believe that it is extremely difficult, if not impossible, to ask our youths to refrain from substance abuse when they see that their adult friends and family members are engaged in substance abuse. We cannot ask and expect our youths not to do something when they see that their adult friends and family members are doing those same things. Therefore, in order to reduce significantly the substance abuse problems among our youths, we must at the same time address reducing significantly the substance abuse problems among the adults. We must address the total problem across all age brackets. In other words, we must have our own adult \u201chouse\u201d in order, to be successful in getting the youth \u201chouse\u201d in order. <\/p>\n [1]<\/a> The NSDUH is a project of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.<\/p>\n [2]<\/a> The legal drinking age in the U.S. is 21.<\/p>\n [3]<\/a> The legal smoking age in the U.S. is 18.<\/p>\n [4]<\/a> The statistics below come from the following two documents: (1) \u201cUnderage Drinking in the United States: A Status Report, 2004\u201d by The Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth of Georgetown University, and (2) \u201cAlcohol & Public Health\u201d by the Center for Disease Control (CDC) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.<\/p>\n\n
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