Why are teens at a higher risk for abuse of prescription pain relievers?
According to the Partnership Attitude Tracking Survey (PATS)*, teens in grades seven through 12 hold the following attitudes: • About half of all teens do not see great risk in abusing prescription drugs • A majority of teens agree prescription drugs are easier to get than illegal drugs • Four of 10 believe they are much safer to use than illegal drugs – even if they weren’t prescribed by a doctor • Roughly three of 10 agree there is nothing wrong with using prescription medicines once in a while and that prescription pain relievers are not addictive Such surveys show that many teens hold dangerous views about prescription drugs. Furthermore, research shows that most teens obtain the drugs they abuse from family and friends – often stealing prescriptions from a medicine cabinet. It is important to talk to teens about drug abuse and to safeguard your own prescriptions to ensure they are not accessible to teenagers or others who visit your home.
