Drug Prevention Education

Mangai Natarajan

Most drug prevention education in America is geared to young people. This is the group most likely to experiment with drugs under the influence of peers. According to Monitoring the Future , a national survey that measures drug use among young people each year, 2002 showed the first significant drop in drug use among youth in nearly a decade, with reductions noted among 8th, 10th, and 12th graders. Levels of use for some drugs are now lower than they have been for almost 30 years. Such declines are unusual, and their underlying causes remain unclear. The same survey does show, however, that some drug use among 12th graders, for example, has remained above 40% since 1996, up from 29.4% in 1991. These statistics bring into question whether the comprehensive measures being taken to reduce youth drug use, including drug prevention education programs, are having the desired effect. Drug prevention education ...

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