Facts: Youth, Alcohol and Other Drugs -

National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence - NCADD

        The National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence fights the stigma

        and the disease of alcoholism and other drug addictions.

            Facts and Information                 Youth, Alcohol and Other Drugs

        AN OVERVIEW

          About 10.4 million Americans between ages 12-20 had at least one drink

          last month; of these 6.8 million were "binge" drinkers (consuming five

          or more drinks in a row on a single occasion) including 2.1 million

          heavy drinkers (consuming five or more drinks on the same occasion on

          at least five different days) (National Institute on Drug Abuse

          {NIDA}, 1999 National Household Survey on Drug Abuse).

          The highest rates of illicit drug use are found among youth ages 18-20

          (between 20% and 21%) with marijuana the most commonly used illicit

          drug (NIDA, 1999 National Household Survey on Drug Abuse).

          80% of high school seniors have used alcohol; in comparison, 62% have

          smoked cigarettes; 49% have used marijuana; and 9% have used cocaine

          (NIDA, 2000 Monitoring the Future Study, Seconardy School Students).

          Purchase and public possession of alcohol by people under the age of

          21 is illegal in all 50 states (Office of the Inspector General {OIG},

          US Department of Health and Human Services {HHS}, "Youth and Alcohol:

          Laws and Enforcement: Is the 21-Year-Old Drinking Age a Myth?,"

          10/91).

          Approximately 2/3 of teenagers who drink report that they can buy

          their own alcoholic beverages (OIG, HHS, "Youth and Alcohol: A

          National Survey. Drinking Habits, Access, Attitudes, and Knowledge,"

          Washington, DC, 6/91).

          Use of alcohol and other drugs is associated with the leading causes

          of death and injury (e.g., motor-vehicle crashes, homicides, and

          suicides) among teenagers and young adults (Centers for Disease

          Control {CDC}, "Alcohol and Other Drug Use Among High School

          Students--United States, 1990," Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report

          {MMWR}, 11/91, p. 776).

          The total cost of alcohol use by youth--including traffic crashes,

          violent crime, burns, drowning, suicide attempts, fetal alcohol

          syndrome, alcohol poisonings and treatment--is more than $58 billion

          per year (DT Levy, K Stewart, et al "Costs of Underage Drinking"

          {report prepared for the US Department of Justice Office of Juvenile

          Delinquency Prevention), Pacific Institute for Research and

          Evaluation, 7/99}).

          Use of alcohol or other drugs at an early age is an indicator of

          future alcohol or drug problems (J Hawkins, R Catalano, "Risk and

          Protective Factors for Alcohol and Other Drug Problems in Adolescence

          and Early Adulthood: Implications for Substance Abuse Prevention,

          1989, p. 78) ; people who begin drinking before age 15 are four times

          more likely to develop alcoholism than those who begin at 21 (National

          Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism news release, 1/14/98).

        USAGE RATES AND PATTERNS

          First use of alcohol typically begins around the age 13; marijuana

          around 14 (NIDA, Drug Use Among Racial/Ethnic Minorities, 1995, p.31).

          People who begin smoking before age 13 are significantly more likely

          than nonsmokers and those who begin smoking later to have problems

          with alcohol and other drugs (E Hanna & B Grant, "Parallels to Early

          Onset Alcohol Use . . .," Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental

          Research, Vol. 23, No. 3, 1999, p. 513-522).

          Among high school seniors, current use of alcohol is higher for whites

          and Hispanics than blacks; the same is true for marijuana, but with

          greater similarity in the rates of use (NIDA, Drug Use Among

          Racial/Ethnic Minorities, 1995, pp. 32, 34).

          Approximately 8% of the nation's eighth graders; 24% of tenth graders;

          and 32% of twelfth graders have been drunk during the last month; 12%,

          23% and 25%, respectively, have used an illicit drug (NIDA, 2000

          Monitoring the Future Study, Secondary Students).

          Among teenagers who binge drink, 39% say they drink alone; 58% drink

          when they are upset; 30% drink when they are bored; and 37% drink to

          feel high (OIG, HHS, "Drinking Habits, etc.").

          Junior/middle and senior high school students drink 35% of all wine

          coolers sold in the United States; they also consume 1.1 billion cans

          of beer (Ibid).

          40% of college students have "binged" on alcohol during the past two

          weeks (NIDA, 1999 Monitoring the Future Study, College Students and

          Young Adults).

          Among college students in one survey, rates of binge drinking were

          highest among Caucasians, 43.3% for males and 24.4% for females; among

          African-Americans the rates were 24.8% for males and 5.4% for females;

          and among Asians, 32% for males and 20% for females ("Alcohol and

          Drugs on Virginia College Campuses," State Council of Higher Education

          for Virginia, 3/93, p. 11).

          Young adults ages 18-25 are most likely to binge or drink heavily. 54%

          of the drinkers in this age group binge and about one in four are

          heavy drinkers (NIDA, 1998 National Household Survey on Drug Abuse).

        NEGATIVE CONSEQUENCES

           Drivers under the age of 25 were more likely than those 25 or older to

          be intoxicated in a fatal crash (CDC, "Alcohol-Related Traffic

          Fatalities Among Youth and Young Adults - United States, 1982-1989,"

          MMWR, 3/91, p. 179).

          The prevalence of drinking and driving increases substantially among

          youth and young adults with the frequency of alcohol use and is

          strongly associated with binge drinking (CDC, "Update: Alcohol-Related

          Traffic Crashes and Fatalities Among Youth and Young Adults--United

          States, 1982-1994," MMWR, 12/95, p.872).

          Drivers ages 21-24 had the highest intoxication rates (27%) for fatal

          crashes in 1996 (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration,

          "Traffic Safety Facts 1996").

          In 1995, 21.5% (262,112) of the clients admitted to alcohol or other

          drug treatment programs were under age 24, including 18,194 under age

          15 (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration,

          National Admissions to Substance Abuse Treatment Services, Advance

          Report No. 12, 2/97, p.30).

          A clear relationship exists between alcohol use and grade-point

          average among college students: students with GPAs of D or F drink

          three times as much as those who earn As (C Presley and P Meilman,

          "Alcohol and Drugs on American College Campuses," Student Health

          Program Wellness Center, Southern Illinois University, 7/92).

          31.9% of youth under 18 in long-term, State-operated juvenile

          institutions in 1987 were under the influence of alcohol at the time

          of the arrest (U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs,

          Bureau of Justice Statistics, "Survey of Youth in Custody, 1987.

          Bureau of Justice Statistics Special Report, 9/88).

          Almost half of college students who were victims of campus crimes said

          they drinking or using other drugs when they were victimized (CR

          Bausell et al, "The Links Among Drugs, Alcohol and Campus Crime,"

          Towson State University Center for Study and Prevention of Campus

          Violence, MD, 1990).

          Researchers estimate that alcohol use is implicated in one- to

          two-thirds of sexual assault and acquaintance or "date" rape cases

          among teens and college students (OIG, HHS, "Youth and Alcohol:

          Dangerous and Deadly Consequences," Washington, DC, 4/92).

          Among sexually active teens, those who average five or more drinks

          daily were nearly three times less likely to use condoms, thus placing

          them at greater risk for HIV infection. Among all teens who drink, 16%

          use condoms less often after drinking (RW Hingson, L Strunin, et al,

          "Beliefs About AIDS, Use of Alcohol and Drugs, and Uprotected Sex

          Among Massachusetts Adolescents." American Journal of Public Health,

          3/90, p. 295-299).

        ATTITUDES, PERCEPTIONS AND INFLUENCES

          80% of teenagers don't know that a 12 oz. can of beer has the same

          amount of alcohol as a shot of whiskey; similarly, 55% don't know that

          a 5 oz. glass of wine and a 12 oz. can of beer have the same amount of

          alcohol (OIG, HHS, "Drinking Habits, etc.").

          56% of students in grades 5 to 12 say that alcohol advertising

          encourages them to drink (The Scholastic/CNN Newsroom Survey on

          Student Attitudes About Drug and Substance Abuse, 2/90).

          30% of children in grades four through six report that they have

          received "a lot" of pressure from their classmates to drink beer; 31%

          to try marijuana; and 34% to try cigarettes (The Weekly Reader

          National Survey on Drugs and Alcohol, Middletown, CT, Field

          Publications, Spring 1995).

          A survey of high school students found that 18% of females and 39% of

          males say it is acceptable for a boy to force sex if the girl is

          stoned or drunk (OIG, HHS, "Dangerous and Deadly Consequences").

          Teenagers whose parents talk to them regularly about the dangers of

          drugs are 42% less likely to use drugs than those whose parents don't,

          yet only 1 in 4 teens reports having these conversations (Partnership

          for a Drug-Free America news release, 4/26/99).

        Compiled 12/99

             National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence, Inc.

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            phone: 212/269-7797   fax: 212/269-7510

            email: national@ncadd.org   http://www.ncadd.org

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