Prescription Drug Abuse among Teens

Prescription drug use is the new trend that’s in for teens. The family or friends medicine cabinets have become the corner drug dealer as his/her source for drugs, but the dangers of prescription drug abuse are just as real as those for illegal drugs. The latest statistics from the partnership for a Drug-Free America on teen prescription drug abuse are very alarming. In a recent survey: one in five indicated that they abuse prescription stimulants and tranquilizers and one in ten reported that they have abused cough medicine. Prescription drugs are now being sold more than illicit drugs. This is because of the money that’s being made off of prescription drugs. There are many harmful prescription drugs out there for teenagers to get high off of. Some teenagers use these drugs for studying purposes; to fit in with a certain crowd, peer pressure or just to see what effects they will get from them. Prescription drugs are as addictive as illicit drugs. Many teens take these drugs because they think that these drugs are safer than illicit drugs or because they believe the myth that these drugs provide a medically safe high and that is far from the truth. Prescription drugs should not be taken without a prescription with your name on it that the doctor has prescribed just for you even if a friend are family member are suffering from the same medical condition that you are. The prescription drugs that teens are ingesting on a day to day basis are as quick for them to retrieve on the internet as it is for them to get from a local drug dealer on the street because on the internet the company that is selling these drugs doesn’t need your age or an identification card as long as you have a credit card with a balance that is all that is required all they are after is money they don’t care who it hurts, who family gets destroyed or if the person is hospitalized or even dies that is not one of their concerns their main and only concern is whether you can pay for the drugs you are requesting and that’s it point blank in a nut shell. Prescription drugs are more easily to get than certain illicit drugs that are sold on the street. Some of the illicit drugs that are sold on the street are more expensive than their normal prescription drug they have been getting from home or friends for free so in their minds why deal with street drugs when there is a whole cabinet of free drugs at home or at grandma’s house or right next door to a friend’s house. Most of the drugs that most teens are addicted to are pain killers as well as over-the-counter cough medicine. If these drugs do not give them the high that they are looking for they tend to mix them with other prescription drugs, street drugs are alcohol to get even higher. Prescription drugs comes second in some teenagers lives, because marijuana is as easy to get to get their hands on and use it is considered the number one drug that teenagers choose to get that rush high. Some prescription drugs that some teens may use to get a high are Oxycontin, Ritalin, and Vicodin. Peer pressure plays a major role in the way other tens react to drug use. Some teens believe because they don’t have parents who love them that drugs can solve their problem. With many teenagers there is always that one negative friend who is always willing to get into something that they know is wrong and they will persuade you to do drugs and any and everything else they can get you to do outside of your character. The majority of most over-the-counter cough and cold medicines are used as “recreational” drug’s, often by young teens. The ingredient that is most commonly abused in over-the-counter cough and cold medicines is DMX (Dextromethorphan), a cough suppressant