Most reported substance use among adolescents held steady in 2022 National Institute on Drug Abuse NIDA

HT drafted the nicotine literature review, the “Future Directions” section, and Figure 1, as well as helped format Supplementary Tables S1–S5. JF drafted the opioid and the co-use literature review and the “Introduction” section. JK formulated the idea for the review and guided the research and writing process. The physical symptoms of withdrawal from these drugs are often nearly the opposite of the effects of intoxication. This fact sheet offers young adults information on living with depression, including depression and approaches to treatment. This fact sheet offers young adults information on living with anxiety disorder.

While drug use may increase the risk of mental health disorders, it’s also important to note that these disorders can lead to substance abuse to self-medicate or numb the emotional pain. If you suspect that a teenager is experiencing either, consult a pediatrician or mental health professional as soon as possible. Importantly, as studies indicate compounding detrimental effects of adolescent and prenatal drug exposure on neurological and cognitive outcomes (Jacobsen et teen drug abuse al., 2007b,c), not all studies outlined here control for prenatal drug exposure. Future studies would benefit from investigating the impacts of drug exposure at multiple developmental points and how this compares with adolescent-exclusive use. Furthermore, the cross-sectional design of many studies reviewed here limits conclusions on causal directions as there is a possibility that observed neuroimaging and behavioral differences predate the onset of substance use.

Vaping Devices (Electronic Cigarettes) DrugFacts

Similarly, Aloi et al. (2018) reported an association between increasing AUD severity and reduced BOLD responses within the ACC and the dorsomedial PFC during the affective Stroop task assessing emotional interference on cognitive functioning. This suggests that activation differences may predate, and possibly contribute to, the initiation of alcohol use. Together, these findings suggest that neural vulnerabilities in regions implicated in inhibitory control predict alcohol use, and heavy drinking subsequently may lead to additional alterations. Another study has demonstrated the reverse relationship between alcohol use and morphological differences, whereby smaller left dorsal and rostral paralimbic ACC volumes predicted later alcohol-related problems (Cheetham et al., 2014).

Cannabis use is common among first-episode psychosis patients (Katz et al., 2016; Abdel-Baki et al., 2017), and cannabis use has been hypothesized to be a causal factor in these disorders (Toftdahl et al., 2016). More recent data appears to confirm this positive association between adolescent cannabis use and schizophrenia spectrum disorders (Arseneault et al., 2002; Jones et al., 2018), particularly in that cannabis both hastens the onset and amplifies the severity of schizophrenia (Shahzade et al., 2018). However, Hanna et al. (2016) reported better cognitive function in adolescent cannabis users with schizophrenia/schizoaffective disorders, suggesting a potential protective role of cannabis in psychosis-related cognitive dysfunction. Structural MRI studies are not consistent with a neuroprotective effect and have suggested that processes underlying gray matter and cortical maturation may mediate the association between adolescent cannabis use and risk for schizophrenia.

Risk factors based on school and peers

It is believed that these disturbances are what lead to mental health problems [30]. The new study, published in JAMA Pediatrics and led by a team of scientists at the National Institute on Drug Abuse, sought to gain a better understanding of how adolescent brains respond to a variety of recreational drugs. Previous research suggested that early exposure to marijuana, nicotine and alcohol might lead to faster development of substance use disorders.

For the purposes of addressing HIV and STD prevention, high-risk substance use is any use by adolescents of substances with a high risk of adverse outcomes (i.e., injury, criminal justice involvement, school dropout, loss of life). On the other hand, traditional prevention advocates may feel that teaching adolescents how to use fentanyl test strips or encouraging them not to use drugs alone undermines the idea that they can choose not to use substances. The drugs young people are using—and the way they’re using them—have also changed, and psychologists say this needs to inform educational efforts around substance use. Alcohol and cocaine are less popular than they were in the 1990s; use of cannabis and hallucinogens, which are now more salient and easier to obtain, were higher than ever among young adults in 2021 (Marijuana and hallucinogen use among young adults reached all-time high in 2021, NIDA). For years, students in middle and high schools across the country were urged to “just say no” to drugs and alcohol.

Severe Side Effects of Drugs on Teens

If those friends are older, teens can find themselves in situations that are riskier than they’re used to. For example, they may not have adults present or younger teens may be relying on peers for transportation. Teens may be more likely to try substances for the first time when hanging out in a social setting.

• The content published in Cureus is the result of clinical experience and/or research by independent individuals or organizations.
• In light of this evidence, it is suggested that early onset of drinking increases the risk for alcohol-related neurocognitive vulnerabilities and that initiation of alcohol use at younger ages appears to be a risk factor for poorer subsequent neuropsychological functioning.
• According to the 2013 Global Burden of Disease report, drug addiction is a growing problem among teenagers and young people.
• One in five parents who suspects their teen is using drugs does not intervene to prevent further drug use.

Because substance use and mental health are so intertwined, some programs can do prevention successfully with very little drug-focused content. In one of the PreVenture Program’s workshops for teens, only half a page in a 35-page workbook explicitly mentions substances. In adults, harm reduction approaches save lives, prevent disease transmission, and help people connect with substance use treatment (Harm Reduction, NIDA, 2022). Early evidence shows similar interventions can help adolescents improve their knowledge and decision-making around drug use (Fischer, N. R., Substance Abuse Treatment, Prevention, and Policy, Vol. 17, 2022). Teens are enthusiastic about these programs, which experts often call “Just Say Know” to contrast them with the traditional “Just Say No” approach. In one pilot study, 94% of students said a “Just Say Know” program provided helpful information and 92% said it might influence their approach to substance use (Meredith, L. R., et al., The American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse, Vol. 47, No. 1, 2021).