Pubdate: Wed, 04 Oct 2006
Source: Garden Island (Lihue, HI)
Copyright: 2006 Kauai Publishing Co.
Contact:  http://kauaiworld.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/964

NATIONAL DRUG SURVEY SHOWS FUTURE TRENDS

More young people tried prescription drugs for the  first time last 
year than marijuana.

That was one of several enlightening results from the  National 
Survey on Drug Use and Health, released  recently by the federal 
government to mark the close of  National Alcohol and Drug Addiction 
Recovery Month.

One of the categories in the survey is substance use  initiation, 
meaning the first time someone uses a drug.  Knowing when first-time 
use occurs for each drug helps  policymakers, researchers and 
addiction professionals  by letting them know what areas to focus on 
in their  drug prevention efforts.

In 2005, an estimated 2.9 million persons aged 12 or  older used an 
illicit drug for the first time within  the past 12 months, nearly 
8,000 initiates per day.  More than half first-time users were 
younger than age  18, and the majority of new users -- 56.2 percent 
- --  were female.

According to the survey, the specific drug categories  with the 
largest number of recent initiates among  persons aged 12 or older 
were non-medical use of pain  relievers (2.2 million) and marijuana 
use (2.1  million), followed by non-medical use of 
tranquilizers  (1.3 million), then by use of inhalants (.9 
million)  and cocaine (.9 million).

This means that prescription drugs have surpassed  marijuana in the 
"drug of choice" category for young  people to try first, according 
to Narconon Hawaii, a  nonprofit founded in Honolulu two years ago to 
fight  illegal drug use.

"There is a reason why we teach young people about the  dangers of 
all drugs," NH executive director Bobby  Newman said in a press release.

Since opening an education office in Honolulu nearly  two years ago, 
Narconon Hawaii's drug prevention  program has worked with thousands 
of students  throughout the islands. Recent efforts 
include  producing and distributing over 6,000 free parent kits  with 
materials to help them speak to their kids about  drugs. The kit 
comes complete with a DVD of Narconon's  prevention presentations and 
information about different types of drugs.

For more information, call Narconon Hawaii at (808)  550-5005 or 
visit www.drug-free-kids.org.
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MAP posted-by: Elaine