One Georgia county struggles with prescription drug deaths

Prescription drug abuse continues to wreak havoc on teens and young adults. The medication that is normally used to treat chronic pain, is instead being taken to get high.

The Forsyth County, Georgia coroner's office recently announced that they have seen a considerable amount of deaths due to prescription abuse, Forsyth Herald reports.

They added that many of the overdose cases are ruled intentional when the victim leaves a note but the deaths are ruled accidental when people take their medication as prescribed. Furthermore, officials told the news source that the biggest contributor to these deaths was narcotic and sedative misuse.

If parents find their children using prescription medication recreationally they may wish to enroll them into boarding schools. Professionals can provide individual therapy that suits the child as they overcome their addiction.

According to a 2009 survey conducted by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, nearly 10 percent of high school seniors used the prescription painkiller Vicodin non-medically. Furthermore, approximately 5 percent of the same age group used the medication OxyContin recreationally.