Pubdate: Sun, 10 Feb 2002
Source: Carroll County Times (MD)
Copyright: 2002 Carroll County Times
Contact:  http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?brd=1289
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1524

SEX AND DRUGS AND INHIBITIONS

Many adolescents and young adults think that drinking or drugs often is a 
prelude to sex among others their age, but few think drinking or drugs 
would increase their chances of having sex.

In other words: It probably happens to other people, but it won't happen to me.

A national survey of 998 adolescents and adults ages 15 to 24 that was 
taken in November and January asked respondents how often they thought 
people their age drank or used drugs before having sex. Eighty-eight 
percent answered either a lot or sometimes.

The survey by the Kaiser Foundation, an independent philanthropic 
organization that focuses on health care issues, also asked whether the 
respondents thought they would do more than they planned sexually if they 
had been drinking or using drugs. Fifty-six percent said they were not at 
all or not too concerned that would happen to them.

Drugs and alcohol typically will lower people's inhibitions and make them 
more susceptible to suggestion. Even the suggestion of sex. People under 
the influence also are less likely to protect themselves from disease or 
pregnancy, the survey found.

Carroll parents have reason for concern. The latest Maryland Adolescent 
Survey, released in September, showed Carroll 12th graders ranking above 
the state average in all categories of alcohol and drug use.

The problem of drug and alcohol use was evident in all the grade levels 
surveyed, 6th, 8th, 10th and 12th, but was the worst among the seniors.

Prevention workers say part of the reason is the increased independence 
that parents give their children at that age. With that independence must 
come some form of responsibility.

Various groups and organizations across the county have done a good job 
spreading the word of the dangers of drug and alcohol use, and that likely 
has stopped at least a few youngsters from spreading their wings too far. 
Those efforts must continue.

But parents also play a crucial role. They must continue to talk to their 
children about drugs and drug use, including alcohol, and about what 
happens when a person is under the influence. The survey provides a good 
starting point.

The Kaiser Foundation is just one of the surveys that parents can use to 
talk to their children about the long-term implications of unprotected sex 
or other risky behaviors.

Having those conversations now can help decrease the chance of your child 
becoming next year's statistic.
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MAP posted-by: Beth