FOR its supporters, random drug testing sends out an important message to schoolchildren. "It provides them with a suit of armour against peer pressure, enabling them to say no to drugs," says John P. Walters, director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP). Since 2002, when the Supreme Court ruled that schools could drug-test middle and high-school students participating in extracurricular activities, the US has seen a rapid increase in such testing.

However, scientists have repeatedly called into question the effectiveness of such tests. Last month the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) reaffirmed its position that drug testing should not be widely implemented without additional evaluation of its safety and efficacy. It also recommended making drug treatment services more readily available for teens (Pediatrics, DOI: 10.1542/peds.2006-2278).

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