NEW YORK, NY January 24 – A new study released today by the Partnership for a Drug-Free America® and the MetLife Foundation found that more than a third of teens (40 percent) and parents (37 percent) think teen abuse of prescription pain killers is safer than abuse of illicit street drugs.

These findings are based on a national phone survey of 502 teens aged 12 through 17 and 677 parents of teens aged 12 through 17 and conducted by CARAVAN/Opinion Research Corporation. The margin of error for the survey is +/- 3.8 percent for the parent sample and +/- 4.4 percent or the teen sample.

KEY FINDINGS FROM THE PARTNERSHIP/METLIFE FOUNDATION STUDY
1. A majority of teens and parents report that teens can get prescription medicines not prescribed for them from parents’ medicine cabinets (83 percent of parents, 73 percent of teens) or teens’ friends (84 percent of parents, 64 percent of teens).

2. Teens and parents disagree on the reasons why teens abuse prescription medicines. The study found 85 percent of parents reported the most important reason teens abuse medications is “to get high,” versus 62 percent of teens; 79 percent of parents say “to fit in,” while 56 percent of teens reported the same; 77 percent of parents say “to have fun,” versus 52 percent of teens.

According to the Partnership’s research, teen abuse of prescription and over-the-counter medicines has become entrenched in teen culture. Nearly one in five teens (or 4.5 million American teens) report abusing prescription medications to get high, while one in 10 teens (or 2.4 million) report abusing cough medicine to get high. (Source: Partnership Attitude Tracking Study)

“This is a case of misinformation and poor attitudes – teens seeing few health risks associated with intentional abuse – teamed with easy access at home and via the Internet. Together it’s a potentially lethal combination,” said Steve Pasierb, president and CEO of the Partnership. “When these medicines are abused – when they are used for anything other than their intended and approved purpose – they can be every bit as dangerous as illegal street drugs.”


Parents greatly underestimate the real power they have in influencing their children’s decisions.
Partnership research also shows that kids who learn a lot about the risks of drugs at home are up to 50 percent less likely than their peers to use drugs, yet fewer than a third of teens, just 31 percent, say they are getting that message from their parents.

“By talking with their teens about the dangers of drug abuse, parents can help them live healthy drug-free lives,” said Sibyl Jacobson, president of the MetLife Foundation. “This campaign underscores the risks of drug use and reinforces the influence that parents can have on their teens by providing the tools they need to help their children make the right choices.”

Visitors to the Partnership’s Web site drugfree.org can download copies of the brochure “Your Child Needs You! A Guide To Help Your Child Lead a Healthy Drug-Free Life,” available in English, Spanish and Chinese. The brochure includes information on the dangers of illicit drug use and serves as a resource to help parents prevent drug use among their children. The brochure is available for free from the National Clearinghouse for Alcohol and Drug Information at 800-729-6686.