Gearing Up for a Drug-Free School Year

Going back to school signifies a time of new beginnings -- new notebooks, classes, and friends. It can also be a time of new challenges for many young people when it comes to drugs. Every day, approximately 4,700 American youth ages 12-17 try marijuana for the first time.

But that doesn’t mean there’s nothing parents can do. Research shows that involvement in supervised activities during the school year lowers a teen’s risk of using marijuana and other illicit drugs. In fact, according to the National Survey on Drug Abuse and Health, teens who participated in two or more youth activities in the past year were 40 percent less likely to have used an illicit drug in the past month as other teens.

Parents should also watch for warning signs of drug use by their teen, such as struggles in the classroom. Students with an average grade of “D” or below were more than four times as likely to have used marijuana in the past year as youths who reported an average grade of “A.” Parents should also know that teens with particularly negative attitudes about school are two and a half times more likely to have used marijuana in the past year than youth with positive attitudes towards school.

Other warning signs of marijuana use include acting distant from family or friends, hanging out with a different crowd, lack of interest in personal appearance, or dramatic changes in eating or sleeping habits.

Marijuana is more harmful than some parents think. Marijuana can be addictive and lead to a host of health, social and behavioral problems at a crucial time in kids’ lives, when their bodies and brains are still developing. Marijuana use damages lungs, impairs learning, and decreases motivation. Kids who use marijuana in early adolescence are more likely to engage in other risky behaviors.

The good news is that parents make a difference in their teen’s decision to stay drug-free. Two-thirds of kids say that upsetting their parents or losing the respect of family and friends is one of the main reasons they don’t smoke marijuana or use other drugs. Parents can also help keep their kids drug-free by monitoring where they are, who they are with and setting rules with clear consequences for breaking them.

For more information and free resources on marijuana and keeping your teen drug-free, visit www.TheAntiDrug.com. Materials are also available through the National Clearinghouse for Alcohol and Drug Information at 1-800-788-2800.