Positive and Negative Trends In Teen Drug Use

Results from the Monitoring the Future study show positive change and disturbing trends in teen drug use.

A new national study of teenagers' substance abuse and their attitudes toward drugs and drug use highlights some positive change as well as some troubling trends.

The annual Monitoring the Future (MTF) study of 8th, 10th and 12th graders shows decreases in some grades in the use of cocaine, methamphetamine and hallucinogens. While that is good news, it also documents the disturbing prevalence of teens abusing both over-the-counter and prescription drugs. More disturbing is the “continued erosions in young people's perceptions of the harms associated with smoking marijuana, using Ecstasy, drinking alcohol and using smokeless tobacco,” the study reported.  Past surveys have found that such "softening" of teens' perceptions of drugs' harms has signaled future rises in rates of drug use. 

The 2009 Monitoring the Future study was conducted by the University of Michigan for the National Institute on Drug Abuse and is widely considered an important indicator of youth drug use, providing valuable insights into teen beliefs and attitudes about drugs and drug use. 

Positive trends shown by the study:

• Both past-year and past 30-day use rates of hallucinogens among 12th graders declined.
• Use of cocaine among 12th graders also was down for both the past year and the past 30 days.
• Lifetime methamphetamine use among 8th graders dropped.
• The perceived availability of several types of drugs (including cocaine, sedatives, heroin, and crystal meth) declined among 8th and 10th graders.

Areas of concern highlighted by the study:

• Seven of the 10 drugs most abused by high school seniors are prescription or over-the-counter drugs acquired primarily from teens' friends or relatives.
• The rate of use of inhalants in the last 30 days among 10th graders increased.
• Attitudes toward marijuana use are moving in the wrong direction. Among 8th and 10th graders, the perception of "great risk" associated with marijuana use declined; perceived harmfulness of marijuana deteriorated among 8th graders; and peer disapproval of marijuana use has also declined.
• For some important drugs like marijuana, MTF shows that drug use has been essentially flat for roughly three years after declining in previous years.
• Although use of alcohol among teens has declined, it remains the most commonly abused substance. Attitudes toward alcohol have also changed: fewer 10th graders viewed weekend binge drinking as harmful, and fewer high school seniors disapproved of having one or two drinks daily.

More information about the Office of National Drug Control Policy can be found at: www.WhiteHouseDrugPolicy.gov.

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