What Families Need To Know…. Teen Substance Use and Abuse.

What Families Need To Know….

Teen Substance Use and Abuse

Overview

Objective: Explain Why Parents & Other Adults Matter In Preventing Teen Substance Use and Abuse

*Teens are Listening & Watching*New Science on Teen Brain Development*Harmfulness of Substance Use to Youth

*Wellness-Health*Trends and Challenges *SD Law & Code Update

*What You Can Do?*Summary

Teens are Listening & Watching

Teens Fall Into One of These Categories Able to talk to parents about their problems and think their parents would be extremely upset if they used alcohol/marijuana

Can’t talk to parents about their problems but think their parents would be extremely upset if they used alcohol/marijuana

Able to talk to parents about their problems but don’t think their parents would be extremely upset if they used alcohol/marijuana

Can’t talk to parents about their problems and don’t think their parents would be extremely upset if they used alcohol/marijuana

Ever drank drank last 30 days Ever drank drank last 30 daysMS HS

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

9%

0%

28%

8%

23%

5%

51%

19%

32%

13%

68%

36%

49%

17%

74%

42%

Alcohol Use By Ability to Talk to Parents About Problems and Parental Disapproval of Underage Alcohol Use

Able to talk to parents about their problems and think parent would be extremely upset if they drank alcohol

Cant talk to parents about their problems but think that their parents would be extremely upset if they drank alcohol

Able to talk to parents about their problems but don’t think parents would be expremently upset if they drank alcohol

Cant talk to parents about their problems and don’t think parents would be extremely upset if they drank alcohol

Why Parents Matter

Rapid City Area School: Youth Development Survey Nov 2011

Ever Used Marijuana Used Marijuana last 30 days Ever Used Marijuana Used Marijuana last 30 daysMS HS

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

3% 1%

16%

6%10%

4%

32%

16%

36%

23%

59%

33%

39%

23%

65%

41%

Marijuana Use By Ability to Talk to Parents About Problems and Parental Disapproval of Marijuana Use

Able to talk to parents about their problems and think parent would be extremely upset if they used marijuana

Cant talk to parents about their problems but think that their parents would be extremely upset if they used marijuana

Able to talk to parents about their problems but don’t think parents would be expremently upset if they used marijuana

Cant talk to parents about their problems and don’t think parents would be extremely upset if they used marijuana

Why Parents Matter

Rapid City Area School: Youth Development Survey Nov 2011

New Science•Teen Brain Under Construction•Impact of Alcohol and Other Drugs

Brain Science &

Brain

Imaging:New insights about:

• Risk taking by teenagers

• How teenagers may be highly vulnerable to drug abuse

Brain DevelopmentMaturation Occurs from Back to

Front of the BrainBlue represents maturing of brain areas

Images of Brain Development in Healthy Youth (Ages 5 – 20)

So what are these changes?Biological Changes

*Mood changes*Body changes

*Greater interest in boys/girls

Emotional Changes

*Confused over who you are

*Confused about what group you belong to

*Happy and sad within minutes

*Feel nervous, edgy, irritable

*Small things may set you off

Social Changes*Frequent arguing

with friends*Changing friends

*Friends become one of the most important

things*Pleasing friends more

despite your needs/wants

*Friends may act different around

boyfriend/girlfriend

Intellectual

Changes*Schoolwork getting

harder; more demanding

*Able to make more decisions; think about

consequences of behavior

*Making hasty decisions

Family Change

s*You want

more privacy*Embarrassed by parents or

siblings*Love/hate relationship with parents*May want

your parent’s opinion

sometimes but get mad at other times

they give it to you

Gender Specific Differences:

Boys Girls

Develop the right side of the brain first which is the physical side

Develop the left side of the brain first which is more verbal

Boys define themselves by competition

Girls define themselves by relationships

Boys talk to report Girls talk to relate

Boys say anywhere from 5,000-7,000 words per day

Girls say anywhere from 16,000-21,000 words per day

Boys 150% hormonal change in 24 hours

Girls 600% hormonal change in 30 days

So: “Girls cry, guys hide”, “Girls get ready for school, guys get dressed”

Harmfulness of Alcohol and Other Drug Use to

Teen Wellness-Health

Alcohol Abuse Vulnerability

“Are teens more susceptible than adults to alcohol?”

Adults become physiologically addicted to alcohol after 6-18 YEARS Teens become physiologically addicted to alcohol after 6-18 MONTHS

With regular use of alcohol;

A survey of over 40,000 adults indicated that among those who began drinking before age 14, nearly half had become alcoholic dependent by the age of 21.

In contrast, only 9% of people who began drinking after the age of 21 developed alcoholism.

U.S. National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism

Marijuana Teens who started smoking at earlier ages are less able to perform certain reasoning and decision-making tasks, compared with those who started later in life.

The brain is forming new connections to encourage further drug use.  

There is a general perspective out there that using marijuana socially is not a problem—

that it is a “safe” drug. Scientists are seeing that is not the case.

Teen Working Memory Performance

Source: Jacobsen et al. Impact of cannabis use on brain function in adolescents. Annals NY Acad Sci. 2004.

Please do not try this at home

Trends and ChallengesFacing Communities

Marijuana of Today

THC is often described as the psychoactive component of the plant – the part that gives the

“high” and changes the way you feel.

In 2012, THC concentrations in marijuana averaged 14.5% compared

to around 4% in the 1980s. Some current strains and “waxes” contain as much as 30%-80% THC

This is based on analyses of marijuana samples confiscated by law enforcement agencies.

Marijuana Potency

1970s

THC 4% CBD 1%1:4

2015

THC 25% CBD 2%1:12

Anxiety, Paranoia, Depression, Schizophrenia

Portable vaporizers◦ lip-gloss sticks◦ pink or sparkly purple

as teenage girls' Smartphone cases.

◦rainbow of neon colors looking a lot like marking pens.

◦fill vaporizers with dried weed, waxes or oils

Hookah Pens

The devices are easily available online.

The Denver Post, Dec. 6, Nancy Lofholm

More Hookah

www.yeskey.com

Law and Activities CodeRelated to Alcohol and Other

Drugs

No person acting as a social host may knowingly permit a person under the age of 18 to illegally consume any alcoholic beverage.

Class 1 Misdemeanor: 1yr of imprisonment in a county jail or $2,000 fine or both.

No person acting as a social host may knowingly permit any person aged 18, 19, or 20 to illegally consume any alcoholic beverage.

Class 2 Misdemeanor: 30 days imprisonment in county jail or $500 fine or both. Effective July 2014 expanded version SB 163

Social Host Law

Immediately upon learning of the illegal consumption, the social host will

take effective and appropriate action to stop the illegal consumption and to secure or attempt to secure contraband alcoholic beverages. If the social host was off the premises but knew of the illegal consumption of alcohol, he/she is still liable.

New Law Effective July 2014

Extracurricular Activities Suspension due to Controlled Substance Violation

First offense: 1 year suspension reduced to 30 days AFTER the student receives an assessment with a certified or licensed addiction counselor AND completes the prescribed recommendations.

Subsequent offense information and full version of coded law is 13-32-9.

What You Can Do?

Action Steps - Clear Messages

Action speaks louder than words Communicate – take time – get the facts Decide on your expectation and rules Teens need clear and consistent limits Talk about and encourage opportunities

for healthy and positive activities

Points to Remember

Promote activities that capitalize on the strengths of the developing brain

Assist your child with challenges that require planning

Reinforce their seeking advice from you and other adults

Encourage lifestyle that promotes healthy brain development

Never underestimate alcohol and drug effects on developing brain

Tolerate “oops” behaviors common during the teens

Recipe for a Healthy Brain• Good nutrition• Exercise• Sufficient sleep• Social connections• Learning music• Positive thinking• Helping others • New learning

1. Delay the onset of alcohol use, especially if it is delayed until adulthood, is better for both brain development and reduces future risk for addiction.

2. Alcohol and other Drug abuse may contribute to learning deficits.

3. Alcohol and other Drug use increases risk of other harms (social, legal, etc.)

Key Reasons for Prevention

Summary Parents & other Adults - What you say

does matter and teens hear you.

The brain undergoes a considerable amount of development during the teen years. The last area to mature is the prefrontal cortex region; involved in planning, decision making and impulse control.

Evidence suggests that adolescents are more vulnerable to the effects of alcohol and other drugs.

New trends: marijuana has potentially 30%-80% more THC; hookah/vapor pens are the new delivery system for many different drugs.

It is illegal to host a party for minors & students that are apart of school extracurricular activities and use a controlled substance, will be suspended from the activity.

Parents need to take action to ensure healthy and full potential brain development by delaying substance use/abuse in the teen years, through clear messages, rules

and consequences.

For more on adolescent brain development, visit www.mentorarabia.org 3D-Brain

www.Parents4parentsrc.org

www.drugfree.org or call 211

Comments

or

Questions?

Many of the brain development slides were prepared by Ken Winters, Ph.D. Professor, Dept. of Psychiatry, University of Minnesota

Support for this work was provided by the Archie and Bertha Walker Foundation, RKMC Private Foundation, and the Mentor Foundation.

Other colleagues whose work and consultation significantly contributed to the development of this presentation:

Jay Giedd, National Institute on Mental Health (USA)Jeff Lee, Mentor Foundation (UK)Tom McLellan, Treatment Research Institute (USA)Linda Spear, SUNY at Binghamton (USA)Susan Tapert, University of California – San Diego (USA)

Acknowledgements