Pubdate: Mon, 31 Jul 2006 Source: Signal, The (CA) Copyright: 2006 The Signal Contact: http://www.the-signal.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/4221 Author: Jessica Marks, Signal Staff Writer Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/youth.htm (Youth) MOST TEENS TRY DRUGS, ALCOHOL Virtually 100 percent of Santa Clarita high school students will experiment with drugs or alcohol or both at some point before they graduate, and many use in their parents' presence, the president of a local anti-drug council said Wednesday. Alcohol, marijuana and methamphetamines are the most commonly used and abused drugs in the Santa Clarita Valley, and in the nation, said Susan Shaddock, program director for the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence of the Santa Clarita Valley. "I continue to be amazed at the number of teen clients (who) use drugs with their parents," Shaddock said. "It is way more common than you'd ever believe." In fact, 63 percent of youth who drink say that they initially tried alcohol at their own home or a friend's with parents present, according to a recent study published by the National Household Survey on Drug Abuse. "Check this out," Shaddock said. "If they do it at home, they're that much more comfortable doing it elsewhere." With that in mind, Santa Clarita is in line with the national statistics that say 40 percent of those who started drinking at age 13 or younger are alcohol dependent later in life, whereas 10 percent of teens who drink after the age of 17 developed dependence. "Any kid you ask (in Santa Clarita) will say, 'everyone's doing it,'" said Cary Quashen, founding director of ACTION, a nonprofit organization that provides substance abuse and crisis counseling programs for parents and teens, . While more kids are in treatment for marijuana abuse than all other drugs combined, more kids lose their lives over alcohol-related incidents, including drunken driving and suicide, Quashen said. And it isn't just low-income or crime-ridden cities that have kids who are addicted to alcohol and other drugs, Quashen said. "That is so far from the case. If you want good drugs, you come to a community like this where there is more money and the parents work, so they're not around," Quashen said. Getting alcohol is not hard, either, with most kids and teens stealing it from stores or from their parents. They may also stand in front of a convenience store and wait for someone old enough to buy it for them, Quashen said. But there is hope, both Shaddock and Quashen agree. "If someone thinks they have a problem, they probably do. And if you think there's a problem with you, see a counselor," Shaddock said. Both NCADD and ACTION offer counseling groups to those teens needing assistance getting off of drugs or alcohol. - --- MAP posted-by: Jo-D