5 Percent Of Boomers Are Still Getting High – At Least Once A Year
The substance abuse division (SAMHSA) of the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) learned some interesting information about how boomers get high these days. The department is fixing to get more funding, I guess, because it reports that in our (even) later years, we're going to need added substance abuse treatment services. Us?
Data from the SAMHSA short report, "Illicit Drug Use Among Older Adults," tells us that 1) fewer than 5 adults in 100 aged 50 or older used either marijuana or a prescription drug for non-medical purposes in the past year; 2) among the surveyed population the incidence of marijuana use is higher than that of illicit prescription drug use between the ages of 50 and 65; and 3) after 65, the use of illicit prescription drugs is greater than the use of marijuana. (The authors suggest that number 3 is due to the fact that those aged 65 or older now, were not raised in a "marijuana culture.")
Marijuana Use Rises Among Teens; Cigarette Smoking Lowest Since 1975
Marijuana use among teenagers increased this year after previous declines, while the use of other illicit drugs like cocaine mostly declined.
According to an annual National Institute on Drug Abuse-funded survey of nearly 47,000 students, almost one-third of 12th-graders and more than one-quarter of 10th-graders reported using marijuana in 2009. Almost 12% of eighth-graders reported marijuana use, an increase from about 11% in 2008.
The survey, conducted by researchers at the University of Michigan, asked teenagers to report on the use of smoking, alcohol use and drug use, including non-medical uses of prescription painkillers and over-the-counter cold and cough products.
The report showed cigarette smoking was at the lowest point since the survey started in 1975, although the use of smokeless-tobacco products increased on some measures this year.
