Alcohol and nicotine are legal drugs for adults in many countries. Even though these dangerous and addictive drugs are "socially acceptable" for adults, they are, to one degree or another, controlled substances for youth throughout the world. Many cultures try to limit their young from using alcohol or tobacco. Efforts to prevent the use of alcohol and tobacco by youth should not be confused with efforts to prohibit adult use of either of these drugs. However, it is time adults looked at their own alcohol and tobacco use, if they want to influence young people.
In
North America
and other countries, alcohol is the number one drug used by teens. Its use is also the number one contributing factor in youthful deaths. In the
U.S.
, the use of alcohol is associated with at least one-half of all car crashes, suicides, drownings, crimes of violence, unplanned sex, poor school performance, and other trauma among youth.
Alcohol and tobacco kill more people annually than all other drugs combined. Alcohol alone is associated with at least one-fourth of all hospital visits in the
United States
. Nicotine is one of the most addictive and harmful of all drugs.
There is a false perception that if a drug is legal it must cause less problems. In many countries and cultures, the use of alcohol and/or tobacco is so deeply woven into the cultural fabric of those countries that neither is acknowledged as a drug or even as a problem.
Rationale:
In July 1995, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) concluded for the first time that nicotine is a drug and that it should be regulated as a controlled substance. Regulations were proposed restricting access to tobacco products and restricting attempts to make these products appealing to children and adolescents. Indeed, if alcohol and tobacco were new products seeking FDA clearance today, each would likely be rejected as hazardous and addictive.
A recent study by Columbia University's Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse, states that the earlier children use the gateway drugs tobacco or alcohol or marijuana, the more likely they are to move on to other drugs. Youth who drank alcohol were 50 times more likely to use cocaine, and those who smoked tobacco cigarettes were 19 times as likely to use cocaine. Nearly 90% of cocaine users had smoked tobacco or drank alcohol or used marijuana first. The study, based on 30,000 American households, established a clear progression that began with use of the gateway drugs of alcohol, tobacco or marijuana and led to use of other drugs.
Dr. John Slade reported at the 1989 National Conference on Nicotine Dependence in
San Diego
,
California
, that tobacco smoking teaches drug acquisition skills to the youth. He said, "For the most part, they're illegal for kids to buy. In addition, kids who smoke get firsthand experience in using a substance to adjust emotional states." Slade reports that tobacco use teaches drug-taking skills and that tobacco use promotes an attitude that fosters other drug taking behaviors.
Compounding the problem is the relative ease with which youth can access alcohol and tobacco. Both drugs are widely available, inexpensive and heavily marketed, making them especially attractive to youth, who are the most price-sensitive consumer age group.
The right of adults to consume either of these drugs is a notion heavily promoted by the alcohol and tobacco industries. This argument is meaningless for many young people who have reached the legal age for use with no real choice left, because they are already addicted. They have been seduced into use of both drugs by slick marketing targeted at youth long before they have had their first drink or used tobacco for the first time.
Youth are bombarded daily with alluring advertising and marketing techniques. Because new alcohol or tobacco users are rarely adults, images that imply sexual prowess, athletic ability, popularity, freedom and escape from problems are especially appealing to young people. Children grow up thinking that they cannot have a good time without alcohol or tobacco. They don't realize that many adults choose not to drink.
Alcohol can kill or cause serious problems any time a young person uses it. Yet, some youth are convinced that drinking alcohol or using tobacco does not cause immediate problems in their lives, and most are certain that they could quit at any time. The average teen smoker had his/her first whole cigarette by 13 and became a daily smoker by age 14.5.
--This piece is reproduced with permission from Drug Watch International
