Study reveals reducing pain medication given to children may prevent substance abuse

Prescription drug abuse is a growing problem among some troubled teens and young adults. The substance can be easily obtained from medicine cabinets and friends who have access to the drugs. Parent involvement and doctors showing these age groups the dangers of abuse may help curb the abuse of these pills.

New research from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine reveals that reducing pain medication prescriptions for children and teens, while providing training to medical professionals about how to manage pain may also combat abuse.

Officials told the news source that the scope of the problem is vast and that opioid - the addictive and lethal substance contained in painkillers - are the second leading cause of accidental death.

Parents who find their child using prescription drugs non-medically may wish to enroll them into boarding schools. These learning institutions provide education on how to overcome addiction and lead a productive life.

A survey conducted in 2009 by the National Institute on Drug Abuse reports nearly 10 percent of high school seniors used the prescription painkiller Vicodin non-medically.