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Teen drug abuse: Help your teen avoid drugs
Teen drug abuse can have a major impact on your teen's life. Find out how to help your teen make healthy choices and avoid drug abuse.
By Mayo Clinic staffMany teens experiment with drugs, putting their health and safety at risk — but teen drug abuse isn't inevitable. You can help prevent teen drug abuse by talking to your teen about the consequences of using drugs and the importance of making healthy choices.
Why teens abuse drugs
Various factors may contribute to teen drug abuse, from insecurity and self-doubt to a desire for social acceptance. Teens often feel indestructible and may not consider the consequences of their actions, leading them to take potentially dangerous risks — such as abusing legal or illegal drugs.
Common risk factors for teen drug abuse include:
- A family history of substance abuse
- Depression
- Low self-esteem
- Early aggressive behavior
- Feelings of social rejection
- Lack of parental supervision
- Poverty
- Drug availability
Consequences of teen drug abuse
Teen drug abuse can have a number of negative consequences, including:
- Impaired driving. Driving under the influence of any drug can impair a driver's motor skills, reaction time and judgment — putting the driver, his or her passengers, and others on the road at risk.
- Sexual activity. Teens who abuse drugs are more likely to have poor judgment, which can result in unplanned and unsafe sex.
- Drug dependence. Teens who abuse drugs are at increased risk of serious drug use later in life.
- Lack of motivation. Drug use may lead a teen to lose interest in or become indifferent about what happens at school or in other areas of his or her life.
- Concentration problems. Use of drugs, such as marijuana, may affect the parts of the brain that control memory, motivation, attention and learning — making it more difficult to learn and perform complex tasks.
- Serious health problems. In high doses, Ecstasy can interfere with the body's ability to regulate temperature and cause liver, kidney and heart failure. Use of methamphetamine can cause heart and neurological damage, psychotic behavior and aggression. Chronic use of inhalants can cause brain or nerve damage and harm the heart, lungs, liver and kidneys. In addition, abuse of prescription or over-the-counter medications can cause depression, respiratory distress, cardiac distress and seizures.
Talking about teen drug abuse
It can be difficult to talk to your teen about drug abuse. Start by choosing a comfortable time and setting. If you're anxious, share your feelings with your teen. You might also consider sharing the responsibility with another nurturing adult in your teen's life.
When you discuss teen drug abuse, you might:
- Ask your teen's views. Listen to your teen's opinions — which may differ from your own — and questions about drug use. Encourage your teen to talk by asking open-ended questions, such as "Tell me what you think about ... ."
- Discuss reasons not to abuse drugs. Avoid scare tactics. Emphasize how drug use can affect things important to your teen — such as sports, driving, health and appearance. Explain that even a teen can develop a drug problem.
- Consider media messages. Some television programs, movies, Web sites or songs glamorize or trivialize drug use. Talk about what your teen has seen or heard.
- Plan specific ways to resist peer pressure. Brainstorm with your teen about how to respond to offers of drugs. Suggest that your teen try saying, "No thanks," or "I don't do drugs because it could get me kicked off the team." Your teen also might offer friends a socially acceptable alternative activity, such as watching a movie.
- Be ready to discuss your own drug use. Think ahead about how you'll respond if your teen asks about your own drug use. If you chose not to use drugs, explain why. If you did use drugs, share what the experience taught you.
Don't be afraid that talking about teen drug abuse will plant ideas in your teen's head. Conversations about drug abuse won't tempt your teen to try drugs. Instead, talking about drug abuse lets your teen know your views and understand what you expect of him or her.
Next page(1 of 2)
- Tips for talking with your child about drugs. American Council for Drug Education. http://www.acde.org/parent/Tips.htm. Accessed Dec. 1, 2009.
- Signs and symptoms of drug use. American Council for Drug Education. http://www.acde.org/parent/signs.htm. Accessed Dec. 1, 2009.
- 10 ways to trick your teen into a healthy, drug-free lifestyle. http://www.timetotalk.org/downloads/halloween_10_Ways_2009.pdf. Partnership for a Drug-Free America. Accessed Dec. 1, 2009.
- Drug abuse prevention starts with parents. American Academy of Pediatrics. http://patiented.aap.org/content.aspx?aid=6299. Accessed Dec. 1, 2009.
- Substance abuse treatment for children and adolescents: Questions to ask. American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry. http://www.aacap.org/cs/root/facts_for_families/substance_abuse_treatment_for_children_and_adolescents_questions_to_ask. Accessed Dec. 3, 2009.
- Teens: Alcohol and other drugs. American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry. http://www.aacap.org/cs/root/facts_for_families/teens_alcohol_and_other_drugs. Accessed Dec. 3, 2009.
- A parent's guide to preventing teen cough medicine abuse. Partnership for a Drug-Free America. http://www.drugfree.org/file.ashx?id=9be2b11a-eff5-4840-97b8-a1aab1962e4c&UVer=3cddd48e-13da-444e-a313-7528682d09e1. Accessed Dec. 17, 2009.
- Parents. The anti-drug. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. http://download.ncadi.samhsa.gov/Prevline/pdfs/PHD1114.pdf. Accessed Dec. 17, 2009.
- Drugged driving. National Institute on Drug Abuse. http://www.nida.nih.gov/Infofacts/driving.html. Accessed Dec. 17, 2009.
- Preventing drug use among children and adolescents: A research-based guide for parents, educators and community leaders. National Institute on Drug Abuse. http://www.drugabuse.gov/pdf/prevention/InBrief.pdf. Accessed Dec. 17, 2009.
- Prescription medicine abuse: A serious problem. Partnership for a Drug-Free America. http://www.drugfree.org/Portal/DrugIssue/Features/Prescription_Medicine_Misuse. Accessed Dec. 17, 2009.
- Preventing teen abuse of prescription and over-the-counter medications. Partnership for a Drug-Free America. http://www.drugfree.org/Portal/DrugIssue/Features/Preventing_Teen_Abuse_of_Prescription_and_Over-the. Accessed Dec. 17, 2009.
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