By the eighth grade, 29.5 percent of adolescents have consumed alcohol, 15.5 percent have smoked cigarettes, and 15 percent have used marijuana (11 Facts About Teens and Drug Use). Substance abuse by young adults using illegal or prescription drugs and alcohol can result in a loss of interest in education, serious emotional problems and chemical dependency. Substance abuse can cause lower grades, leading to becoming less involved in school activities, skipping school because of lack of interest and possibly dropping out all together. Drug use can lead to chaos in the home, resulting in domestic violence, lack of communication, which can cause relationships to become strained and broken. The teen may need more of the substance to get the full effect or high because of the tolerance hey have built up against the substance. They may also feel that they cannot function or go through the day without using the drug. Teens that use drugs or alcohol generally have had something in their life lead to that consumption. There are many factors that may cause a teen to drink or use drugs. Factors may be social, mental, or hereditary. Many reason teens choose to use drugs and alcohol are social factors. Teens may want to fit in with their friends or a certain group. They may also feel mature and grow up while using substances. If teens have mental issues, they may be more likely to use drugs or alcohol. Teens who feel like they are not emotionally connected or loved by their parents are more susceptible to drug use. Teens who have poor self-esteem or emotional or mental health problems, such as depression are also at increased risk for drug use (Teen Alcohol and Drug Abuse). Teens who have alcohol and drug addictions in their family history ... ... middle of paper ... ...ings and thoughts of suicide. In conclusion, substance abuse has the most affect on teens mentally, by affecting the performance in school, emotional problems, resulting in relationships at home becoming strained and broken and also teens becoming chemically dependent on the drugs that they use. Works Cited Raczek, Linda Theresa. Teen Addiction. San Diego: Lucent, 2004. Print. "Impact of Drug Use on Your Life." ReachOut Blog RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Nov. 2013. "Teen Alcohol and Drug Abuse." Cigna, a Global Health Insurance and Health Service Company. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Nov. 2013. "Healthcare Services." Healthcare Services. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Nov. 2013. "Dual Recovery Anonymous - a 12 Step Fellowship." Dual Recovery Anonymous - a 12 Step Fellowship.N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Nov. 2013. "The Effects of Drug Abuse on Teens." Casa Palmera. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Nov. 2013.
Many things can cause teen drinking. One of which could be from lack of parental involvement. If a parent does not involve their time with their teen through schoolwork, friends, work, and/or relationships, that teen may feel the need to turn to alcohol. If that teen feels the need to reach out and talk to someone, and that someone being the parent who is not there for them, they might just want to drink away their problems. Another cause could be due to the lack of community activities and organizations. Such activities could be sports, dance, or just going out and meeting new people. One of the most dramatic causes, I feel, is misplaced emotions and not dealing with them. From what I hear my friends say, they want to drink away their sorrows. Other causes to teen drinking could be peer pressure, wanting to “fit in” with the crowd, or just lack of adult supervision and having the urge to experience. Al...
The use of alcohol by adolescents is widely viewed as disobedience in American society. Although, alcohol use is technically illegal until the age of twenty-one (in 19 states the consumption of alcohol in not specifically illegal for people under the age of twenty-one), there is still an excessive use of dinking in teenagers today. Since alcohol is associated with all three leading causes of death among teens, it can also have less life-altering consequences such as a drop in academic performances and a decline of friend and family relationships. Also, mental disorders like anxiety, depression and behavioral issues as in loss of temper, an argumentative personality, being easily angered, and blaming others for mistakes. Alcohol is the most commonly abused drug in teenagers and society contributes to abuse by linking drinking to sophistication and good times. (“Alcohol Abuse and Youth” 1)
There are an estimated 3.3 million teen-age alcoholics in the United States. Adolescents who begin drinking before age 15 are four times more likely to develop alcoholism than those who begin drinking at age 21. Youth who drink alcohol are five times more likely to smoke cigarettes, four times more likely to smoke marijuana and three times more likely to use an illicit drug. Teens that use alcohol tend to become sexually active at earlier ages. Teens who use alcohol are more likely to be victims of violent crimes such as aggravated assault, robbery or rape.
Many environmental factors contribute to a person’s proneness to substance abuse. These factors include but are not limited to stress, early physical or sexual abuse, witnessing violence, peers who use drugs, and drug availability. (Addiction Science) The desire to be accepted within a particular group often creates an enormous amount of stress in teens. This stress and feeling of alienation is a driving force towards drug use. Research has shown that, “Another important environmental factor is the amount and quality of emotional and social support a person receives. Teens who reported having an adult they trusted and could talk to, for example, have a lower risk of addiction than those who don’t.”(Environmental Factors) An impoverished environment increases the likelihood of substance abuse and addiction as well. Those who are apart of a lifestyle of poverty often experience incarceration and dropping out of school. Those who drop out of school, are unemployed or live in unsafe areas are at “higher risk, especially if their home environment has already exposed them to dru...
According to the Michigan Institute for Social research, reported the results of their 1992 and 1993 national survey of nearly fifty thousand American high school students across the country ages thirteen through eighteen. Studies show that a gradual decrease in the use of most illicit drugs by younger people. The peak year for illicit drug use by high school seniors was in 1980. The 1992 and 1993 surveys reported an alarming shift, a modest but statistically significant increase in the use of several drugs such as cocaine, marijuana, heroin, and inhalants. This survey attributes the increase in drug use to students’ perceived risk or danger in using a particular drug. In 1992, thirteen year-olds were less likely to see cocaine, crack and marijuana as dangerous. But in 1993, there was a significant increase in marijuana use by seventeen and eighteen year olds and a significant increase in marijuana use by thirteen year-old students. Cocaine use by seventeen and eighteen year olds declined in 1992. However there was a significant increase in cocaine use by thirteen year-old students between 1991 and 1992.
Drugs cause an overall disturbance in a subjects’ physiological, psychological and emotional health. “At the individual level, drug abuse creates health hazards for the user, affecting the educational and general development of youths in particular” (“Fresh Challenge”). In youth specifically, drug abuse can be triggered by factors such as: a parent’s abusive behavior, poor social skills, family history of alcoholism or substance abuse, the divorce of parents or guardians, poverty, the death of a loved one, or even because they are being bullied at school (“Drugs, brains, and behavior”) .
Drinking and driving, smoking tobacco, or consuming drugs such as marijuana seems to be the new way to be cool in high school nowadays. It can make teenagers feel superior, but they don’t know that the happiness is only a mask, covering the true long-terms affects of what drugs and alcohol may do to you. It takes less than one minute to ruin your life using these illegal substances. The pressure can lead to choices teenagers may not want to take and this doesn’t only affect that child. Drug and alcohol abuse in teens today will affect the men and women they become tomorrow.
Poor peer relationship can be seen as both cause and consequence of teen substance abuse. To develop in a negative and unhealthy environment can lead a person to make poor decisions, and to make poor decisions can lead a person to build a relationship with other individuals who share their same detrimental practices and who do not provide a positive peer support. To make a poor decision can lead the youth to get involve in deviant behavior due to being under the influence affect the person 's judgment and increases the chances of getting involved in delinquent
Poland, Scott. "Teenage Over-The-Counter Drug Abuse." District Administration 47.2 (2011): 70.Academic Search Premier. Web. 1 Dec. 2013.
"The CBHSQ Report: A Day in the Life of American Adolescents: Substance Use Facts Update." The CBHSQ Report: A Day in the Life of American Adolescents: Substance Use Facts Update. N.p., 29 Aug. 2013. Web. 25 Nov. 2013. http://www.samhsa.gov/data/2K13/CBHSQ128/sr128-typical-day-adolescents-2013.htm
Adolescences in particular can be easily influenced to abusing a drug or multiple drugs. I believe this happens because teens often lack education, live in an environment where drugs are readily available, are peer-pressured and the lack of proper growth of the frontal lobe. Many factors contribute to adolescences experimenting with drugs. As side from being a child, the adolescence stage is of great importance. Healthy habits and activities are supposed to be instilled within this stage of life. The adolescence stage can be very perplexing and what is made into a habit then is easily carried on into adulthood. Our genes act together with our environment to contribute to the addictive behaviors we are motivated to develop. If addiction is left untreated it can ultimately lead to de...
It has been discovered that most people who struggle with drug addiction began experimenting with drugs in their teens. Teenage drug abuse is one of the largest problems in society today and the problem grows and larger every year. Drugs are a pervasive force in our culture today. To expect kids not to be influenced by the culture of their time is as unrealistic as believing in the tooth fairy (Bauman 140). Teens may feel pressured by their friends to try drugs, they may have easy access to drugs, they may use drugs to rebel against their family or society, or they may take an illegal drug because they are curious about it or the pleasure that it gives them.
"11 Facts about Teens and Drug Use." Do Something. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Dec. 2013.
Few people deny the dangers of drug use, while many teens are curious about drugs. They should stay away from drugs because drugs affect our health, lead to academic failure, and jeopardizes safety. Drugs are used from a long period of time in many countries. The concentration of drugs has increased from late 1960’s and 1970’s. Drugs can quickly takeover our lives. Friends and acquaintance have the greatest influence of using drugs during adolescence.
All teenagers have their own reasons for taking drugs. Research shows that people take drugs mainly: to fit in a community or group, to escape or relax, to feel older than their friends, to have fun, to rebel and not have fear, and to experiment. A lot of people who have taken drugs say that they saw it as a solution to a problem. But later admitted that they ended up with bigger problems. Everyone has issues in life, because no one is perfect. Some advantages that people think drugs have are: having a group of friends, doing something exciting, coping with stress, and helping with problems like shyness, sleep ...