Alcohol, Tobacco, and Drug Use Among Adolescents

Introduction

The use of drugs, alcohol, and tobacco by adolescents in the United States has been a concern of parents, teachers, administrators, and community leaders for many years and across many contexts. The purpose of this dissertation proposal is to engage a number of research studies and scholarly articles that bring a fresh focus and provide a theoretical foundation for further study. Research methods include the review and analysis of meaningful scholarship in the literature. The research also provides information on prevention models being proposed or already in place by communities, schools, and other agencies.

Data and Research on Drug, Alcohol, and Tobacco Use

How frequently do adolescents in the United States use drugs and alcohol? According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), alcohol is used by more young people in the U.S. than illicit drugs or tobacco. The CDC reports that in 2007, 45% of high school students used alcohol regularly and 26% reported episodic heavy or binge drinking. Some 11% of high school students admitted to driving after consuming alcohol within the 30 days prior to the survey, and 29% reported riding in a car driven by someone who had been drinking in the previous 30 days.

Regarding marijuana, the CDC explains that it is the most commonly used illicit drug among American adolescents. Marijuana use decreased from 27% of high school students in 1999 to about 20% in 2007. Cocaine use by high school students rose from 2% in 1991 to 4% in 2001, then fell to 3% in 2007. In 2007, roughly 6% of high school students reported using ecstasy. About 4% admitted to using methamphetamines — down from 9% in 1999 — and hallucinogenic drug use decreased from 13% in 2001 to 8% in 2007 (CDC, 2008).

The "Monitoring the Future" study, published in the Journal of Research on Adolescence, draws on data from approximately 37,000 students in 8th, 10th, and 12th grades from schools across the 48 contiguous states. The study examines reasons why adolescents become substance users, and finds that misbehavior in school and "peer encouragement of misbehavior" are "positively associated with substance use at age 14 and with increased use over time" (Bryant, 2003, p. 361). Students who have negative school experiences are more likely to use tobacco, alcohol, and marijuana (Bryant, p. 362). Typically, academic difficulties occur before a student begins experimenting with drugs and alcohol; Bryant references numerous studies linking psychological distress and truancy with adolescent substance use.

The Bryant research concludes that adolescents with positive attitudes and supportive parents are far less likely to abuse substances or begin smoking tobacco (Bryant, p. 367). Variables examined in the "Monitoring the Future" study include parental education, academic achievement, school misbehavior, loneliness, school interest, perceived school difficulty, effort, school bonding, college plans, and peer support for school misbehavior. The study ultimately concludes that "developmentally appropriate interventions that target the needs" of youth may help them "negotiate transitions to high school or college and avoid health risks" (Bryant, p. 390).

A report published in the Digest of Addiction Theory and Application (Monti, 2007) found that a substantial number of adolescents use the Internet to exchange information about drug use. The Caron Treatment Centers conducted a study of 10.3 million messages posted by adolescents on sites such as MySpace.com and teenspot.com; approximately 80% of the posts related to alcohol, marijuana, cocaine, or LSD.

Tobacco Marketing and Youth Targeting

Do tobacco manufacturers manipulate the menthol content of cigarettes in order to target young people? According to a report in the American Journal of Public Health (Kreslake et al., 2008), the answer is yes. When menthol is added in significant amounts, it has a strong appeal to younger people just beginning to smoke. Menthol brands such as Kool, Salem, and Newport taste better to beginners than harsher non-menthol cigarettes, "making smoking initiation easier" (Kreslake, p. 1685). From there, adolescents often progress to stronger brands with less menthol, such as Marlboro. The article concludes that "for years tobacco manufacturers have specifically marketed brands to youth" — "this vulnerable population" — by manipulating the "sensory elements" of cigarettes (Kreslake, p. 1689). It is therefore critically important that schools provide credible educational programs to warn adolescents about these tobacco industry practices.

The use of cigars and cigarettes by adolescents is examined in the American Journal of Health Behavior (Brooks et al., 2008), based on a random sample of 4,486 high school students in a Midwestern county. Notably, more students reported using both cigarettes and cigars (10.6%) than cigarettes only (6.4%) or cigars only (7.4%). Also concerning is what Brooks describes as the "lack of significant decline in youth tobacco use." In Virginia, 45% of ninth-grade cigarette smokers admit to using at least one other tobacco product; in California, the figure is 40% (Brooks, p. 641). A separate survey of 4,335 students in grades 9 through 12 — of whom 56.9% were Caucasian, 27.1% African American, and 9.3% Hispanic — found that nearly 29% used some form of tobacco product, including smokeless tobacco. Of those who tried cigarettes first, 17.4% currently use cigarettes only and 4% use cigars only; of those who tried cigars first, 12.2% use cigars only and 43% use both cigarettes and cigars (Brooks, p. 643).

One topic the article does not address is the use of "blunts" — cigars packed with marijuana — which are particularly popular among urban youth. A simple Google search for "how to roll a blunt" returns millions of results, including video tutorials, illustrating how accessible this information is to adolescents.

Conclusion

Clearly, the adoption of tobacco-free school policies in school districts nationwide is necessary, given that once an adolescent becomes addicted to nicotine, it is extremely difficult to quit. The evidence reviewed in this proposal — spanning alcohol, marijuana, illicit drugs, tobacco, and online drug discourse — underscores the need for developmentally appropriate, multi-pronged interventions that address both individual risk factors and the broader social and commercial forces that drive adolescent substance use.

Works Cited

Alcoholism & Drug Abuse Weekly. (2002). Teenagers abusing cough syrup. Retrieved March 1, 2009, from http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-2173465_ITM.

Brooks, A., Gaier Larkin, E. M., Kishore, S., & Frank, S. (2008). Cigars, cigarettes, and adolescents. American Journal of Health Behavior, 32(6).

Bryant, A. L. (2003). How academic achievement, attitudes, and behaviors relate to the course of substance use during adolescence: A 6-year, multiwave national longitudinal study. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 13(3), 361–397.

Center for Disease Control. (2008). Alcohol & drug use. Retrieved March 1, 2009, from http://www.cdc.gov/HealthyYouth/alcoholdrug/index.htm.

Johnson, A. O., Mink, M. D., Harun, N., Moore, C. G., Martin, A. B., & Bennett, K. J. (2008). Violence and drug use in rural teens: National prevalence estimates from the 2003 Youth Risk Behavior Survey. Journal of School Health, 78(10), 554–561.

Kreslake, J. M., Wayne, G. F., Alpert, H. R., Koh, H. K., & Connolly, G. N. (2008). [Menthol cigarettes and youth targeting]. American Journal of Public Health, 98(9), 1685–1692.

Monti, P. M. (2007). Study: Teens talk drugs on the Internet. The Digest of Addiction Theory and Application. Retrieved March 2, 2009, from http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-33764875_ITM.

SHPPS 2006. (2007). Alcohol or other drug use prevention. Journal of School Health, 77(8).

Summerlin-Long, S., & Goldstein, A. O. (2008). A statewide movement to promote the adoption of tobacco-free school policies. Journal of School Health.