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Teen Drug Use Statistics 2007

Getting educated as to the risks facing today's teens is a necessary first step in any parental drug prevention plan. The numbers vary by year, and different drugs seem to fall in and out and out of favor with experimental youths, but one thing always stays the same – More teens than not are experimenting with drugs and alcohol.

Almost half of all high school seniors in America have experimented with illegal drugs and about three quarters have tried alcohol.

The Breakdown

Drug Use Prevalence by American High School Seniors – 2007

Marijuana – 41.8% have tried the drug, 31.7% have used it in the last year, 18.8% in the last month, and 5% uses it every day.
Inhalants (Sniffing glue, gasoline etc.) – 10.5% have done it. 3.7% have done it within the last 12 months, and 1.2% within the last month.
Hallucinogens – 8.4% have tried hallucinogens (LSD, Magic Mushrooms, Peyote), 5.4% have used within the last year, and 1.7% in the last month.
Cocaine – 7.8% have used, 5.2% have used within the last year and 2% have used within the month.
Heroin – 1.5% of high school seniors have tried heroin.
Tranquilizers – 9.5% of high school seniors report having used tranquilizers to get high, 6.6% have used within the last year.
Alcohol – 72.2% have used alcohol, 66.4% have used within the last year, 44.4% within the month and 3.1% use alcohol daily.
Steroids – 2.2% of high school seniors have used steroids.
Ecstasy – 6.5% have tried it, 4.5% have used within the last 12 months
Meth – 3% have tried meth.
Prescription Pain Pills – 15.4% of high school seniors reported having used prescription drugs (vicodin, oxycontin etc.) to get high during the last 12 months.
Cough Medicine – 5.8% had used cough medicine to get high (DXM)

(All data from NIDA)

Talking with teens about the dangers of drug experimentation can pay enormous dividends. Drugs like oxycontin are as addictive as heroin or crack cocaine, and yet both parents and teens consistently underestimate the risks.

Teens who smoke marijuana are at a much greater risk for later in life psychiatric illness, and about 1 in 10 will develop an addiction – and teens that binge drink are at far greater risk to develop later in life alcoholism.

The perils are great, but studies consistently show that teens whose parents talk to them about drugs are at a much lower risk to experiment.

Learn what drugs pose the greatest threat to teens. Drug use statistics for 2007 - different types of drugs, and what percentage of American high school students are using them.