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Study shows teens use illicit drugs less

By Associated press
Published December 12, 2007

WASHINGTON - Illicit drug use by teens continued to decline this year, but the use of prescription painkillers remains popular among young people, according to a federally financed study released Tuesday at the White House.

The survey, done by the University of Michigan's Institute for Social Research, looked at the behavior of eighth-, 10th- and 12th-graders nationwide. The study, in its 33rd year, found overall drug use falling, thanks to a drop in the popularity of marijuana and methamphetamine.

But it also found that teen use of other drugs, such as cocaine, is holding steady, and narcotics like OxyContin and Vicodin remain in vogue.

Overall, the proportion of eighth-graders reporting use of an illicit drug at least once in the 12 months before the survey was 24 percent in 1996. It now has fallen to 13 percent. Among 10th-graders, the rates dropped from 39 percent to 28 percent between 1997 and 2007. Usage among 12th-graders declined from a peak of 42 percent in 1997 to 36 percent.

"The cumulative declines since recent peak levels of drug involvement in the mid 1990s are quite substantial, especially among the youngest students," said Lloyd Johnston, the principal investigator for the study, financed by the National Institute on Drug Use. It surveyed 50,000 teens.

The drugs most responsible for this year's decline are marijuana and various stimulants, including amphetamines, methamphetamine and crystal methamphetamine. At least one in every 20 high school seniors has at least tried OxyContin, a powerful narcotic drug, in the past year, the study said. The popularity of Vicodin also remained constant.

While the use of most illicit drugs has shown declines in the past decade or so, most prescription psychotherapeutic drugs did not. These include sedatives, tranquilizers and narcotic drugs other than heroin.

The study also reported an increase in the use of ecstasy.

[Last modified December 12, 2007, 01:23:32]