Age 16 Peak Time for Teens to Start Drugs

Think your teen is too young to start experimenting with prescription drugs? You may have to rethink that position if a new study is any indication. Researchers have found the age teens begin first use of prescription pain relievers is earlier that first expected.

Previously, it was believed that their final year in high school was the time most adolescents began their first use of prescription drugs, but a new survey tells a different story.

Scientists at Michigan State University's Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics were surprised to find after examining data from 120,000 adolescents that the peak risk for first onset of prescription pain relievers misuse is in mid-adolescence, around 16 year old.

Prevention Needs to Come Earlier

"While much of the previous thinking was that misuse of these drugs emerged in the final year of high school and during the college-age years, we found that for adolescents the peak risk of starting to misuse these painkillers generally occurs earlier, not during the postsecondary school years," author James C. Anthony said. "We suspect many physicians, other prescribing clinicians and public health professionals, will share our surprise in this finding."

The researchers said determining first onset of drug use is important in knowing when to target prevention program. Programs aimed at high school seniors and college students may be a case of "too little, too late," Anthony said in a news release.

The MSU researchers suggests that prevention programs might be best aimed at 13 and 14-year-olds.

^{Source: Meier EA, et al. "Extramedical Use of Prescription Pain Releivers by Youth Aged 12 to 21 Years in the United States." Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine 7 May 2012.}

Related Information:

• Is Your Child Using Drugs or Alcohol?
  
• A Prescription for Teen Danger
  
• Tips for Parents

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