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CNN Live Saturday
Disturbing Trends in Teen Drug Abuse
Aired March 02, 2002 - 22:41 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JEANNE MESERVE, CNN ANCHOR: Recent studies are showing some disturbing trends in teen drug abuse, particularly alcohol consumption. In fact, alcohol appears to be overwhelmingly the drug of choice for young people. Figures released by the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse say by the time they're seniors in high school, 80 percent of teens have tried alcohol, 47 percent have tried marijuana. And 29 percent have used other illegal drugs.
Dr. Gary Jaeger is an addiction medicine specialist. He joins us now from our Los Angeles bureau to talk about kids and alcohol.
Dr. Jaeger, is there any simple answer to why these numbers are so high?
DR. GARY JAEGER, ADDICTION MEDICINE SPECIALIST: Really, there's not a simple answer, Jeanne. It's a problem with cultural acceptance and cultural allowance. And if we deal with it on a simpler basis, I don't think we're really going to get a handle on it.
MESERVE: Is parental drinking a factor in this?
JAEGER: Parental drinking is a factor, but also parental acceptance. The belief that oh, it's just a behavior that boys will be boys. Or oh, it's only beer. These behaviors contribute to a culture in which drinking can continue.
MESERVE: Well, what would you say to those who say boys will be boys? What's the answer?
JAEGER: Well, I'd say stop and look at what's really happening to your children. What we've seen since 1975 is that by the eighth grade, there's a 36 percent of our children are drinking. What we know is that in high school, among those who drink, that the likelihood of sexual interaction is seven times greater. And in those who drink heavily, they're far more likely to have multiple sexual partners. That injuries in automobile accidents, high school dropouts, all of these are dramatically increased as a result of this epidemic with alcohol.
MESERVE: Why do you think that so many parents refuse to accept this, that are in effect, denial?
JAEGER: I think that it has for so long been the accepted cultural norm that drinking occurs, that problem drinking doesn't occur in our family. It only occurs in others. And it's a long, long process.
Now as we've seen a culture where two parents are working or increased single parent families, and many more children are home alone in the 3:00 to 6:00 p.m. time, drinking and experimentation with drugs and other behavior is significantly increasing in this group as well.
MESERVE: Well, if you're a parent and your child comes home, and you can smell alcohol on their breath, how do you determine whether this is an incident or whether it's a problem?
JAEGER: Well, I'm going to suggest that if your child comes home with alcohol on your breath, it's a problem.
MESERVE: In everything?
JAEGER: And it needs to be dealt with as such. It does not mean that the child is addicted or habitually using, but it's the beginning of experimentation. And it needs to be dealt with as a serious issue. Children -- parents need to speak with their children about their concerns and about what the potential problems are. They need not to condone or dismiss the incident as unimportant.
And very strongly, they need to be willing to set an example for their children around appropriate use of alcohol.
MESERVE: How do you know if it's become a habit for your child?
JAEGER: That's a more difficult problem. And I think in most of these young people, we're not yet seeing it in the range of habit or certainly not in the range of addiction as yet. But we're seeing increased number of young people taking vodka to school in water bottles. That's a problem. That's well beyond experimentation and teenage (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
MESERVE: Wow. Dr. Jaeger.
JAEGER: If children are drinking..
MESERVE: No, go right ahead.
JAEGER: ...more than four or five times in a month's time, that's a serious problem. And when they're becoming intoxicated at any age, that's a serious problem.
MESERVE: Dr. Gary Jaeger, thanks so much for joining us tonight.
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