Prescription drug use among teens is an issue that is taking center stage in the state of Arkansas, in response to the observation that the state posted the highest rates of teen prescription drug abuse.
Twenty one percent of high school seniors in the state have admitted to prescription drug abuse, while 33 percent revealed that they did not believe that there is anything wrong with abusing prescription drugs. The state has one of the highest rates of abuse of medical pain relievers among 12-25 year olds, and 63 percent of teens source prescription drugs from their parents’ or other family members’ medications.
These facts regarding prescription drug use among Arkansas’ teens were explained during the monthly meeting of the Community Organization for Drug Education (CODE) on Wednesday. In attendance during this meeting was Steve Varady, policy coordinator with the Office of the State Drug Director, who said: “We don’t want our kids to die from prescription abuse… There is a myth of safety with prescription drugs; we are trying to teach that they (prescription pills) are not.”
Painkillers, depressants, and stimulants are the common types of medications that are abused by teens. Two thousand five hundred young people, aged 12 through 17, try abusing a pain reliever for the first time each day, and more teens are found to be abusing prescription drugs, as opposed to marijuana. They are also more readily available to teens, as opposed to illicit substances.
Commonly abused drugs are as follows: Vicodin, OxyContin, Codeine, Percocet, Klonopin, Valium, and Xanax.
Varady enjoins all Arkansas residents to be vigilant about safeguarding prescription medication, by monitoring their medicines and controlling access, as well as disposing old or unused medicines properly.
Tags: Codeine abuse, Klonopin abuse, oxycontin abuse, Percocet abuse, teen drug abuse, teen prescription drug abuse, valium abuse, vicodin abuse, Xanax abuse
