JUST BY TALKING TO THEIR KIDS ABOUT DRUGS, PARENTS CAN REDUCE USAGE BY UP TO 50%1
Check out some interesting facts on drugs and get the knowledge you need to tackle the problem. After you know the facts, talk to your kids about drugs right away and help prevent usage by up to 50%.
To learn even more, check out our helpful Resources to start up a conversation with your kid.
FACTS:
26% of students have smoked marijuana…12% have smoked cigarettes².
In the August issue of the ACS' Monthly journal “Chemical Research in Toxicology” marijuana smoke caused significantly more damage to cells and DNA than tobacco smoke.
Some of the highest percentage of drug usage comes from kids in higher income families.
20% of teens have taken a prescription drug to get high. 75% said they stole it from home.3
Almost twice as many young people admit to driving after taking drugs over alcohol.4
40% of kids say they’ve been driven in a car by someone who had just taken drugs.4
Almost half of youth suspended in school used marijuana in the previous 30 days.5
The mean age of youth first engaging in illicit drugs is 12.6 years old.6
Canada has a significantly higher incidence of usage of illicit drugs among 10th and 12th graders than the U.S.7
2 Used by Students Grade 7-12 In the past year - (Source: CAMH Drug Use Among Ontario Students 2009 study)
3 (Source: CAMH Drug Use Among Ontario Students 2009 study)
4 Source: Health Canada - Canadian Addiction Survey – Substance use by Canadian Youth
5 Source: Health Canada - Source: 2004-05 Youth Smoking Survey - Date Modified: 2007-12-12
6- Source: U.S. = NIDA; Canada = CAMH Drug Use Among Ontario Students 2009 study + Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse (CCSA) 2004
7- Source: U.S. = NIDA; Canada = CAMH Drug Use Among Ontario Students 2009 study + Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse (CCSA) 2004
