Substance Abuse In The United States

The United States healthcare system has undergone a wide variety of changes over the past few years. As the overall health of its citizens continues to deteriorate and people live longer, certain aspects of healthcare are costing an increasingly large portion of the healthcare budget. Problems such as obesity, diabetes, cancer, and substance abuse have become the most pressing issues facing healthcare providers today.

During the year 1960, only four million Americans had ever tried illegal narcotics; today that number has risen to 74 million (DEAMuseum). The National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) concluded that over the past thirty days, more than 20 million Americans over the age of twelve have used illegal drugs (NCADD). As one of the top health-related problems facing the nation today, the prevalence of drug abuse in society strains the economy, health care system, criminal justice system, and poses a major threat to public safety. This is because once they are hooked on a particular drug; addicts will do whatever it takes to come into possession of more of it. To illustrate that point, a 2004 study conducted by the Department of Justice (DoJ)

In and around most large cities in America, the rising substance abuse epidemic has brought about a renewed interested in determining the root cause of substance abuse, the effects of substance abuse on individuals and societies, and the substance abuse treatment modalities that achieve the best outcomes. In reviewing the current research on substance abuse there seems to be no one clear cause of substance abuse disorders, although there is strong evidence that a number of life circumstances may predispose an individual to a substance abuse disorder, as well as a number of protective factors that may reduce an individual’s risk of developing a substance abuse disorder. One important risk factor that is commonly associated with substance

Since 1990, the Drug Use Forecasting (DUF) program conducted by the National Institute of Justice has measured substance abuse among male detainees/arrestees in 12 jurisdictions across the country. The DUF data indicates the increases in illicit drug use by youth between 1993 and 1995. In 1995, youth were tested positive for at least one drug ranged from 19 percent in Portland, OR, to 58 percent in Washington, D.C. DUF data, which doesn’t a lot information on alcohol use by juveniles, shown in 1995 that the illicit drug most frequently used by delinquent youth was marijuana (National Institute of Justice, 1994 and

Out of the items on the list, I chose to do my paper on illicit drugs. I will discuss why illicit drug use has increased over the past decade, especially the usage of marijuana, and the National Institute on Drug Abuse, an organization actively combatting illicit drugs.

Hypothesis III, drug use and crime share common causes, conveys the strongest explanation correlating both drug use and criminal behavior. Based on research, Levinthal (2012) suggests the link of drug use and crime are indirectly related due to interactional circumstances. Evidence affirms, crime rates are higher in communities of poor social status, where drug use is likely to occur (Levinthal, 2012). However, circumstances can fluctuate, depending on the individual’s circumstance, environment, and economic status. Reiss and Roth’s 1993 study (as cited in Gorman & White, 2000) confirms, based on the National Research Council, the risk factors of childhood violence were the same for teenage drug use, as well as, adult alcohol and drug problems.

With Illegal drugs, 9 percent of all high school males had used cocaine; moreover 50 percent of adolescent boys having used marijuana (Garbarino, 1999). Overall drug use among teenagers, which started in 1976 (when 45 percent admitted to some drug use) and continued to 1994, the reported overall rate is on the increase again and now stands at 36 percent (Garbarino, 1999). Drugs makes humans do things they wouldn’t normally do and with this comes shootings and homicides because they are under an influence and do not have self control. Youth homicides, under the age of 21, are usually 25 percent of the time with statistics at 23, 000 per year.

Families in the United States are composed of parents who live in a community. There are families who face challenges that affect adolescents. The most common problem seen today is adolescents that were influenced to do drugs or already doing them. According to the National Survey on Drug Use shows that 53,000 adolescents from 12 to 17 are already doing drugs. These problems are weakening families and ethical values which make adolescents rebel. In other words, drug use can lead to violent crimes, sexual molestation, and teenage pregnancy that causes challenges for families. The issues, including drug use are principally about stressful life events, peer impact, and failure of guardians to keep adolescents away from harmful activities. Besides,

Studies have shown that the United States of America has high levels of drug use (Abadinsky, 2014). Drugs, crime and violence are related in a number of ways. The most obvious reason is that certain drugs are deemed illegal in the United States; therefore, making it a crime to use, possess, distribute, or manufacture these substances (Abadinsky, 2014). These drugs can influence the user’s behavior and can lead to violent acts or other criminal activity being committed. This essay will examine the connection between drugs, crime and violence and discuss whether or not the current approach to drug use and abuse has reduced crime and violence in the last thirty or forty years.

In the juvenile and criminal justice system, the racial disparity is important, especially in the criminology and public health (Kakade, et al., 2012 , p. 1307). The study utilized data from the national survey to examine the connection of substance use and the illegal behaviors among young people. Similarly, a weaker economy leads some young people to a greater use of substances and other illegal drugs (Bretteville-Jensen, 2011, p. 353). The young individuals (teenagers) in a weaker economy have greater time to engage in illegal drug use and self-medication due to mental stress caused by some financial problems. Through the data, the racial disparity can be clearly understood including the long-term impact in the adolescence on the educational accomplishment. On the other hand, some people are interested about the illegal drug consumption and the number of users involved. For example, in the United States, a study explores the variations in the macroeconomic conditions across other countries and the use of illegal drugs of the young people in the community (Bretteville-Jensen, 2011). As a result, the condition is characterized by the decreasing factors in the household income, employment, business investments and profits, and other capacity

About one in five young adults between the ages 16 and 24 have used illegal drugs in the past year. The use and abuse of drugs during

Since 2000, the drug use rate in America has risen to the highest it’s ever been. In a survey done in 2009, 8.7 percent of people age 12 and up said that they used illegal substances within a month of taking the survey, a 9 percent increase since 2008 (Abuse, National Institute on Drug, 2010). This statistic alone is very concerning due to

The link between Juvenile Justice and Drug Crime The relationship between drugs and crime is complex, and one question is whether drug use leads people into criminal activity or whether those who use drugs are already predisposed to such activity. I chose this topic because I feel as though most juveniles have been incarcerated because of the act of drug crime. There are many different types of crimes juveniles get into such as Use-Related crime. These are crimes that result from or involve individuals who ingest drugs, and who commit crimes as a result of the effect the drug has on their thought processes and behavior. Juvenile crime that is related to drug use, has a chronic effect on violent crimes; poor family relationships; ill health; cognitive problems and poor attainment in education. For example, in 2010, the Texas Juvenile Probation Commission found that 25% percent of all the juveniles referred were “frequent drug users”. This has come upon to be a large amount.

Adults are not the only segment of the population that abuse drugs. Juveniles in the U.S abuse illegal drugs at an alarming rate as FBI arrest statistics show that between 1994 and 2003 juvenile drug arrests increased by almost twenty three percent (Bartol & Bartol, 2014). Juvenile drug use leads to delinquency as it leads to a life of crime to support the addictive habit. So how does drug abuse lead to a life of crime? Researchers have been searching for answers for several years and have focused on two issues: the use, sale, distribution, possession and manufacturing of drugs, and the possible effects on the drug user that may promote illegal activities (Bartol & Bartol, 2014).

According to the National Household Survey on Drug Abuse in 2001, 12% of Americans ages 12 and older reported illegal drug use in the past year (Drug Policy Information Clearinghouse, 2003). Some of the most popular drugs include marijuana, cocaine, and heroine. With such widespread use worldwide, illegal drugs have serious social and political impacts. Socially, drug use spreads quickly and is closely related to crimes. Politically, drug use sparks the debate between prohibition and legalization.