Drug Abuse Prevention for Adolescents in Adair County

The Issue

In Adair County, drug use has become a major source of crime. The Court or criminal justice is listed as the number one substance abuse treatment referral source for the county (Missouri Department of Health & Senior Services, 2010). A third of the areas prison admissions in 2009 were due to drugs (MDHSS, 2010). The same year, the Division of Alcohol and Drug Abuse reported that twenty-six adolescents were receiving treatment for substance abuse (MDHSS, 2010).

Alcohol, Marijuana and Methamphetamine are reported to be the primary drugs of abuse for those seeking treatment of all ages (MDHSS, 2010). The short-term effects of alcohol are difficulty walking, blurred vision, slurred speech, slowed reaction times, and impaired memory, but more serious permanent effects can happen with prolonged use. These long-term effects include brain damage, liver disease and malnutrition. The extent to which these permanent effects occur can be determined by the age a person began drinking and how long a person has been drinking (National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, 2004).

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, chronic users of marijuana are likely to experience long lasting impaired learning and memory skills. Also, marijuana smoke has been shown to have 50-70% more carcinogens than tobacco smoke. The earlier marijuana use starts the higher the likelihood is of addiction. Young users are also at risk for developing mental illness, such as schizophrenia, later in life (NIDA Infofacts, 2010).

The detrimental effects of methamphetamine include anxiety, confusion, insomnia, mood disturbances, and violent behavior (National Institutes of Health, (n.d.)). In Adair County, there were eight methamphetamine lab incidents in 2008 alone (MDHSS, 2010). The amount of drug use in Adair County is trickling down to the youth.

Poverty, school dropouts, victims of abuse and homelessness are all risk factors that Adair County youth are exposed to, that make them susceptible to drug use (HTF, (n.d.)). As of 2008, the percentage of children living below the poverty line is 23.4%, which is much higher than the state percentage of 18.9%. The drop-out rate for the 2008-2009 school year was 3.6%, which is an increase from previous years. As of two years ago the number of drop-outs was as low as 1.7% (MDHSS, 2010). The percentage of child abuse and neglect is a shocking 48.2% of children in Adair County (Missouri Census Data Center, 2008). These statistics show how much the youth population is at risk for using drugs. A 2010 study of Adair County middle school students showed 5.5% drank five or more drinks of alcohol in a row within a couple of hours. In this same survey, 8.1% of middle school students used inhalants and 4% of middle school students used marijuana (Eldridge-Houser, 2010). These numbers are too high, but with certain steps they can be lowered.

40 Developmental Assets


The 40 Developmental Assets are a list of positive factors, which if existent in an adolescent’s life, are an effective method in preventing them from participating in risky behaviors such as drug use. The Search Institute has made a downloadable list of the assets that are important in an adolescent’s life. Here is the link for any interested parties: http://www.search-institute.org/system/files/40AssetsList.pdf. Adolescents who exhibit many of the Development Assets are shown to be less likely to participate in problem alcohol and drug use. Of those adolescents with 31-40 developmental assets only 3% participate in problem alcohol use and 1% participate in illicit drug use ("What kids need," 2007 ).

There are numerous ways to ensure that an adolescent has enough assets or to improve their number of assets. Make sure adolescents have a “Constructive use of Time” by getting them involved with activities such as music lessons, sports or other clubs. Three or more hours should be spent every week with organizations, whether they are at school or in the community (“What kids need,” 2007). The asset, “Service to Others,” involves a young person serving in the community for at least one hour per week. Strong parental involvements in a child’s life, along with proper discipline, are both ways to protect against drug abuse (National Institutes of Health, 2010).





 Heartland Task Force




The Heartland Task Force is an organization whose mission is “to guide youth and families to achieve their highest potential by reducing substance abuse using a comprehensive, long-term, collaborative, multi-sector approach. The vision is to reduce substance abuse among youth and over time, among adults, by increasing protective factors and decreasing risk factors in our community” (Heartland Task Force, (n.d.)). Some of the services that the organization sponsors are community based programs for family and youth, which consist of: Drug-Free Family/Community Nights at the YMCA, Mother Son Swim Party, Daddy-Daughter Dance, Outrageous Olympics, Back to School Programs (HTF, (n.d.)). Participating in any of the above activities is a good way to increase the chances of an adolescent not abusing drugs or alcohol. Adair County’s adolescents may be high risk subjects for drug abuse, but all that can be changed with a little effort by providing safe alternatives to drug use that will keep them entertained.

References

Eldridge-Houser, J.L. Adair County Drug Coalition. (2010). Report of middle school students use and perceptions about drugs and media campaign. Adair County, MO.

Heartland Task Force, C-2000 Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition: A CADCA Coalition of Distinction Award Winner. (n.d.). Information for new members

Missouri Department of Health & Senior Services, Division of Alcohol and Drug Abuse. (2010). Status report on missouri's alcohol and drug abuse problems Retrieved from http://dmh.mo.gov/docs/ada/countylinks/e53.pdf

Missouri Department of Health & Senior Services, Division of Alcohol and Drug Abuse. (2010). Treatment admissions data Retrieved from http://dmh.mo.gov/docs/ada/countylinks/e54_000.pdf

National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.  (2004). Alcohol Alert Retrieved from http://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/aa63/aa63.htm

National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Drug Abuse. (2010). NIDA  Infofacts: Marijuana Retrieved from  http://www.nida.nih.gov/infofacts/marijuana.html

National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Drug Abuse. (n.d.). Preventing drug abuse among children and adolescents Retrieved from http://www.nida.nih.gov/Prevention/index.html

National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Drug Abuse. (n.d.). Research Report Series - Methamphetamine Abuse and Addiction Retrieved from  http://www.nida.nih.gov/researchreports/methamph/methamph3.html

Office of Social and Economic Data Analysis, (2010). Um extension social and economic profile adair county, mo Adair County, MO: University of Missouri Extension. Retrieved from http://mcdc.missouri.edu/cgi-bin/broker?_PROGRAM=websas.cntypage.sas&_SERVICE=appdev&_debug=0&county=29001

What kids need: developmental assets. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.search-institute.org/developmental-assets