Talk honestly about drugs
The most effective deterrent to drug use is not police or prisons — it is knowledge. One of the best sources for information are parents. Kids who learn about the risks of drugs from their parents are 36 percent less likely to smoke marijuana, 50 percent less likely to use inhalants and 56% less likely to use LSD. Seventy-four percent of fourth graders wish their parents would talk to them about drugs.
Drugs may be a difficult subject to discuss, but the answer to any problem is always more communication, not less. Parents, discuss drugs with your children so that they understand the dangers of drug use. Young people, ask your parents about drugs.
uring the last decade, drug use in society has increased markedly, especially among youth. A survey of 31 nations by the World Health Organization released in February 2001 found 41 percent of 10th graders in the U.S. had tried marijuana and 23 percent of students surveyed in the U.S. had tried illicit drugs such as heroin and cocaine.
