Why Prescription Drugs?
“About five million school-age children take a prescription drug every day for some sort of behavior disorder,” says Carol Falkowski, director of research communications at the Hazelden Foundation. “As a result, kids learn at an early age that if you take a pill, you get a mood change.” And many teens view pharming as safe, since the drugs are of pharmaceutical quality, says Steinhagen. “But that’s a frightening myth that can have fatal consequences.” Of course, over-the-counter drugs are also welcome at pharming parties. Kids abuse cold medications made with dextromethorphan, or DXM. Instead of the one or two pills recommended, they’ll take two to three boxes’ worth at a time, to create a drug-induced psychosis, says Steinhagen. If they don’t have a prescription, teens pan their parents’ medicine cabinets and the cabinets at their friends’ houses. And they’re striking gold online, where they can easily get OxyContin, Xanax, Ritalin and other drugs. According to CASA, 89 percent of web
