Drug Abuse In The United States

Drug abuse among teenagers in the United States has become a very serious epidemic in recent years. In 2003, there were approximately 7.5 million American adolescents aged 12 to 17 that had used drugs at least once in their lifetime, according to the National Drug Intelligence Center (NIDA). At this young and impressionable age, America’s youth does not take the time to think or worry about the negative effects that drug use can have on them or their future. “Drug addiction will lead to problems at university or school and loss of alertness, which can cause injury. Also it will affect mood, change their system of values and could lead to depression” (Butler, 2010). Today’s drug use in not limited to illegal drugs, as legal or prescription …show more content…
The many factors that can attribute to adolescents and teens beginning the use of drugs, whether legal or illegal can include, but not limited to their relationship with parents; stress, low self-esteem, friends pressuring them into joining what they do, and also complete curiosity. As stated previously, teens are abusing a wide variety of drugs, both legal and illegal. Both variations of drugs can have long-term and or instantaneous health consequences. In 2003, 40.2 percent of high school aged teens had used or currently using marijuana. In this study conducted by the NIDA, “Youths who used it [marijuana] before 17-years-old, indicated smaller brain and found to be smaller in height and weight than teens who used marijuana after the age of 17” (). Some of the immediate side effects of marijuana can include affects on memory, time and sounds. During classes, this can have a drastic effect on the teen’s ability to stay focused on any lessons that are being …show more content…
When an adolescent’s peers are involved in any type of drug use, there can be an overwhelming amount of pressure for them to experiment with the drug. “Individuals are often faced with a choice: be a part of this group or not, and usually the group of users prevail. Moreover, it is believed, that drug using is a measure of ‘cool’ and increasing authority with peers” (Melton, 2010). Also, according to a recent study conducted by the NICA, “teenagers want to improve their athletic or cognitive performance by using various drugs”. When in reality, they are only hurting themselves in the long run and will eventually be busted. Being caught using drugs can be detrimental to the ability to obtain scholarships; either for athletics or academics for use in college. When it comes to drug use, the benefits will never out weight the