4 Troubled Teens Blog

The rise in childhood obesity has lead to countless studies, books and articles about proper nutrition. But as Julius Pokomandy reported in a Sept. 9 North Shore News article, childhood eating habits can also affect whether or not young people will engage in adolescent substance abuse:

Studies from the National Center of Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) at Columbia University have been looking at the tremendous impact that family meals have on children. Their research repeatedly shows how children suffer when they don't spend regular, casual time with their families gathered around the dinner table.

Here is a quote from their summary:

"Compared with teens who frequently had dinner with their families (five nights or more per week) those who had dinner with their families only two nights per week or less, were twice as likely to be involved in substance abuse. They were 2.5 times as likely to drink alcohol, and nearly three times as likely to try marijuana."

Family members who eat together also have healthier relationships with each other, Pokomandy wrote, and children in these families report less tension at home.

Labels: prevention, family, substance_abuse, meals, communication

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Communities That Care, a program designed to reduce the rate of substance abuse among U.S. eighth-graders, has reported significant progress.

Among adolescents who participated in the program, alcohol use has been reduced by 25 percent, binge drinking has declined by 37 percent, and use of smokeless tobacco has decreased by 50 percent.

• The university-designed program is in place in12 small and medium-sized towns in seven different states.
  
• Each city was matched with a town of similar size, which did not employ the program, as a way to test the impact of the program.
  
• Communities That Care started in 2004 and now involves more than 4,400 teens.

A study of the program appeared in the journal Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine.

Labels: prevention, substance_abuse, community, adolescent

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Teens who drink when they are depressed are more likely to have suicidal thoughts, according to a study that was published in the Journal of Adolescent Health.

Dr. Elizabeth Schilling of the University of Connecticut Health Care Centerstudied 32,000 young people in grades three to 12. About 12 percent said they drank when they were depressed. Of this group, one in five had attempted suicide. "Drinking while down was associated with significantly greater risk of suicide attempts among those not reporting suicidal ideation in the past year," Dr. Schilling said.

With teen suicide rates remaining disturbingly high, experts advise parents to be on the lookout for any indications that their children are suffering from depression or are engaging in substance abuse as a means of dealing with stress and pressure.

Labels: suicide, depression, teenagers, substance_abuse, drinking

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According to a story this week on the Scientific American website, federal prisons currently lack sufficient drug treatment programs for inmates. According to a recent study, approximately 1.7 million adults (more than 2 percent of the population) are currently incarcerated or on probation. About half of them are addicted to a substance such as heroin, alcohol, crack, or methamphetamines (meth), but only 20 percent of those substance abusers actually receive effective treatment. These data come from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland.

Study co-author and NIDA director, Nora Volkow, commented on the cost-effectiveness of implementing effective drug treatment programs within the criminal justice system:

"For every dollar that you spend on treatment of substance abuse in the criminal justice system, it saves society on average four dollars."

(Source: www.sciam.com)

Labels: treatment_programs, substance_abuse, prision

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A recent report from Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) concurs with earlier findings that adolescents suffering from bipolar disorder (BPD) are more likely to smoke and abuse substances. An article on the report appeared in the June 2008 issue of Drug and Alcohol Dependence. Timothy Wilens, MD, director of Substance Abuse Services in MGH Pediatric Psychopharmacology and leader researcher on the study, comments on the study findings:

"This work confirms that bipolar disorder (BPD) in adolescents is a huge risk factor for smoking and substance abuse, as big a risk factor as is juvenile delinquency. ... It indicates both that young people with BPD need to carefully be screened for smoking and for substance use and abuse and that adolescents known to abuse drugs and alcoholespecially those who binge useshould also be assessed for BPD."

Experts estimate that as many as 1 in 5 children and adolescents treated for mental health issues have BPD. (Source: www.sciencedaily.com)

Labels: mental_health, substance_abuse, bi-polar

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Religion helps people develop self-control, which at least one psychologist believes may explain why religious people have lower rates of substance abuse and depression, better academic success, lower levels of criminal behavior, better health, and longer lives.

Dr. Michael McCullough of the University of Miami Department of Psychology combed through eighty years of research on religion for a report published in the journal Psychological Bulletin. Among his findings were that religious rituals affect the part of the brain that regulates self-control, which may explain why religious people are less likely to misuse drugs and alcohol or have criminal behaviors.

Dr. McCullough also found that since religious people believe their goals are "sacred," they put more energy into them, and are more likely than others to attain them.

Labels: substance_abuse, religion, self-control

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When he was a 10th grader, Ryan Truax spent most of his time high on various kinds of drugs. What started with marijuana and alcohol eventually evolved into ecstasy and cocaine. It was only after he'd been arrested on drug-related charges that he got serious about turning his life around.

"Truax, who will graduate from Century High School today, has now been sober for 21 months. He received a Turnaround Achievement award in May for his work to overcome issues with chemical dependency."

The turnaround wasn't easy, and included stays at two different treatment facilities. Ryan has recently started an addiction support group for teenagers and has as many as 15 kids show up to the meetings. He says that helping others overcome their addictions helps him "ensure [his] sobriety". Source: Post-Bulletin - Rochester, Minnesota

Labels: substance_abuse, graduations, recovery

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A recent Youth Risk Behavior Survey conducted by State University College in New York found that teens are continuing to engage in risky behavior at about the same rates as they always have.

"In 2007, we still had 72 percent of high schoolers having used alcohol, 37 percent having smoked pot and 39 percent having had sex."

The news is discouraging for some, encouraging for others. There has been a slight decline in overall substance abuse in the past decade; a decline which is credited to the increase in anti-drug campaigns across the country. Source: The Daily Star (NY)

Labels: sex, risky_behaviors, substance_abuse

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A new study from the University of Buffalo found that teens who consume "energy drinks" are more likely to engage in risky behaviors such as substance abuse, unprotected sex, and violence.

Lead author Kathleen Miller, writing in the Journal of American College Health, emphasizes that her study does not prove that the drinks cause the behaviors.

About one-third of young people ages 12 to 24 regularly consume energy drinks, which often contain twice the caffeine found in a strong cup of coffee.

Labels: risky_behaviors, substance_abuse, caffeine

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Recently, the National Institute on Drug Abuse offered the first-ever Drug Facts Chat Day. Teens were invited to submit anonymous questions about anything related to drugs and alcohol. The questions were received and answered by some of the top substance abuse experts in the nation.

"[Q] What are the long term effects of smoking pot [A] There are many long-term effects of smoking marijuana. The use of marijuana can produce adverse physical, mental, emotional and behavioral changes, and, contrary to popular belief, it can be addictive. Marijuana smoke, like cigarette smoke, can harm the lungs. The use of marijuana can impair short-term memory, verbal skills, and judgment, and also distort perception..."

Other questions included, "Why is marijuana a gateway drug?," "Have most teens used marijuana in their life?," and "Can you die from weed?" Source: U.S. News and World Report

Labels: marijuana, substance_abuse, questions

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A White House report being released today says teens that use marijuana regularly are at risk not only of developing a dependency but of developing a mental illness. The report summarizes information from several studies on marijuana use among teenagers.

"...using marijuana increases the risk of developing mental disorders by 40 percent, the report said. And teens who smoke pot at least once a month over a yearlong period are three times more likely to have suicidal thoughts than nonusers..."

Marijuana use among teens has decreased by 25% since 2001, which is encouraging. But the millions of kids who are still using need to know the dangers associated with it. Source: NBC25, Michigan

Labels: marijuana, substance_abuse, dependeny

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Adolescence is a time of "great risk taking and opportunity" because of changes that occur in brain development, according to Dr. Jay Giedd, writing in the Journal of Adolescent Health. Changes in the brain during the teen years affect cognition, emotion, and behavior.

Dr. Giedd's study is the result of the National Institute of Mental Health's Longitudinal Brain Imagining Project, begun in 1989. About 2,000 people are undergoing brain imagining scans every two years as well as neuropsychological and behavior assessments and DNA tests. The 387 subjects ages 3 to 27 are serving as models of brain development.

Gray matter in the human brain increases in volume until the early teens, and then decreases through old age. During adolescence, brain development is a refining process, with increased connectivity and integration of disparate functions, changing reward systems and frontal/limbic balance, Dr. Giedd writes. The brain's "executive functions" increase during adolescence. Executive functions might include the regulation of emotion, response inhibition, organization, long-range planning, and the ability to pay attention.

"The teen brain is not a broken or defective adult brain," Dr. Giedd said. However, the changes and the "enormous plasticity" of the adolescent brain may make teenagers more likely to take risks and seek new sensations and experiences.

Read more about how a teen's brain development is linked to drug use in this article: "Brain's Executive Control Function Linked to Substance Abuse in Teens"

Labels: brain_chemistry, development, substance_abuse

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Amanda Daniels' father struggled with substance abuse and eventually committed suicide. When she found herself pregnant at 17, she couldn't believe what her life had become.

"Now 31, Daniels is a social worker and author of 'Transparent Tears', a new book she hopes will serve to educate both troubled teens and professionals who work with them."

She shares her experiences not only as a teen, but with teens. Living in Waltham, Massachusetts, she sees many of the same issues that she saw in her hometown of Cambridge. Read more at DailyNewsTribune.com.

If your teen is struggling with substance abuse and drug addiction, visit the Teen Help Directory for help with teen drug abuse.

Labels: risky_behaviors, support, substance_abuse

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The phrase "troubled teen" is most often associated with broken and underprivileged families, but for the last several years a new kind of troubled teen has been emerging from upper-middle class families. The stress of high expectations is pushing many teens over the edge.

"Twenty-two percent of girls from affluent families suffer from clinical depression, three times the national average, [Madeline] Levine said. And when [Denise] Pope researched her book, 'Doing School: How We Are Creating a Generation of Stressed-Out, Materialistic and Miseducated Students', she found that 75 percent of high school students said they had at some point cheated on a test, and 90 percent had copied homework."

While many parents push their kids academically, they simultaneously try to protect their kids from feelings of frustration, sorrow, or disappointment, which hinders the development of proper coping mechanisms in adolescents, causing them to resort to things like cutting, or substance abuse to deal with their stress. Read more at News-Service.Stanford.edu.

Labels: stress, substance_abuse, affluence

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The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) has release a report revealing significant changes in rates of substance abuse among pregnant teenagers.

The report analyzes available data from 1992 to 2007 for pregnant teens who entered substance abuse programs.

“According to the report, the proportion of pregnant teen admissions for marijuana abuse more than doubled from 19.3 percent in 1992 to 45.9 percent in 2007. Marijuana has surpassed alcohol as the primary substance of abuse cited in admissions for pregnant teens.” [Source: DocuTicker]

On a more positive note, alcohol abuse among teens dropped nearly as much as marijuana abuse increased – falling from 44.1 percent in 1992 to 20.3 percent in 2007.

 

Labels: pregnancy, marijuana, substance_abuse

Posted By: Stefanie Hamilton 1 Comment

Mentally ill people do not commit more crimes than anyone else. However, they are more likely to abuse drugs and alcohol, and substance abusers commit more violent crime, according to a new study from Europe.

• Dr. Seena Fazel analyzed records that went back thirty years of 8,000 people with schizophrenia and 3700 who have bipolar disorder.
• All participants lived in Sweden.
• The main finding of the study was "the relationship between violent crime and serious mental illness can be explained by alcohol and substance abuse. If you take away the substance abuse, the contribution of the illness itself is minimal."

People with mental illness who abuse substances have crime rates six to seven times higher than the general population. However, this rate is the same for all substance abusers.

"It's probably more dangerous walking outside a pub on a late night than walking outside a hospital where patients have been released," said Dr. Fazel, a lecturer and psychiatrist at the University of Oxford in Great Britain.

This study appears in the Archives of General Psychiatry.

Labels: violence, mental_health, drug_use, substance_abuse, alcohol_abuse

Posted By: Jane St. Clair 1 Comment