While our education programs have contributed to the decline of illegal drug use among American youth, the abuse of prescription drugs by teens is rising quickly. In fact, a 2006 study by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration found that, for the first time, the number of new abusers (12 years old and older) of prescription drugs is the same as the number of first-time marijuana users. So while we have been fighting a battle to educate our youth about drug abuse on one front, another front has quietly opened and expanded.

The nation’s education programs on drug abuse have had success in shaping perceptions of street drugs and those that abuse them. We’ve seen the use of ecstasy, heroin and methamphetamine decline, while marijuana use has held steady. Although we still have a problem, it seems the message that these street drugs are illegal, dangerous and potentially deadly has reached teens and had an impact on them. The risks of abusing prescription drugs, however, have not been communicated.
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