The Effects of Adolescent Substance Abuse Essay

Adolescent substance abuse is a phenomenon in our country that has been steadily inclining ever since the 2000’s. The effects of this incline are very straight forward and call for action. The facts are that alcohol and drugs are the leading causes of crime among youth and that alcohol and drugs are the leading factors in teenage suicide. (National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence, Inc., 2014) Because adolescence is such a crucial developmental age the effects of alcohol and drug use are catastrophic. To fully understand this phenomenon we must firs operationalize all of the factors we are trying to study. The DSM V classifies substance abuse as,

The study of adolescent alcohol dependency is a growing field and offers both captivating and alarming discoveries because more and more younger children are depending on alcohol to function on a daily basis. You would be surprised to know how many young individuals are now dependent on alcohol because of the false advertisement that happens through television commercials and through social influences that surround these

Alcoholism is a growing problem in the United States. It can, and oftentimes does, result in illnesses and deaths. “Alcohol is the world’s third largest risk factor for disease and contributes to 4 [percent] of the global burden of disease” (Marshall, 2014). In relation to alcoholism, specifically adolescent alcoholism is a growing concern in the United States. The age at which young people are starting to experiment with alcohol is younger than ever. Dr. Don Macdonald explains that this may most likely be due to the fact that it is legal for the majority of the population. Therefore, adolescents are able to access and get a hold of alcohol more easily than they can other drugs – such as marijuana, heroin, cocaine, etc.

Nearly 25 percent of teens drink alcohol because they think it is fun; however the problems it may bring are not so fun (Hyde 22). There over six times more teen deaths per year from alcohol than any other drug (O’Malley 30). Alcohol affects the body of teens as well as all of the developmental processes. A major issue of teens drinking is that it increases the chance of becoming an alcoholic in the future; which leads to lowered self-control, impaired judgment, and lowered inhibition (Heath 12). Alcohol can completely change the life of a teen from the time they start drinking till death. Alcohol affects so many aspects of a person’s life and once it does, it is so hard to get life back to normal. Alcohol effects teens by harming them

According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health in 2014, two-thirds of adolescents 12 or older reported that they drank alcohol in the past year, with 6.4% meeting criteria for an alcohol use disorder.

Substance abuse accounts for a high number of deaths in the United States. Alcohol is the third leading cause of deaths in the country with approximately 88,000 deaths occurring annually (Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 2014). In contrast, almost 40,400 annual deaths are related to the use of illicit drugs. As reported by The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration (2014), 24% of youths in the eighth grade, and 64% in the twelfth grade, have used alcohol in the past year. Of the adolescents ages 12-17, 11.6% have used alcohol in the past month, 6.2% have engaged in binge drinking, and 5.6% have smoked cigarettes (Fisher, G.L., & Harrison, T.C., 2013). Substance abuse is defined as the continuous use of alcohol and/or other drugs despite consequences in one or more areas of a person’s life (Fisher, G.L., & Harrison, T.C., 2013). Substance abuse relates to other problems, such as illegal behavior, family conflict, poor academic performance, lack of respect for authority, deficiencies in self-confidence, and psychiatric symptoms (Liddle, Rowe, Dakof, & Henderson, 2009). Although substance abuse is a prevalent issue, interventions have been implemented to assist these individuals in making a change.

Substance use is commonly seen during the adolescence period. Adolescent are found engaging in alcohol, smoking, and other drug use. However, the use of the substance is leading to health damage. Ultimately, “in the long term could lead to widespread disease.”

      Over the years, many researchers have dedicated their time and energy to study adolescent alcohol abuse. They have found that there are many factors that contribute to adolescent alcohol abuse. These factors are psychological, environmental, social, and cultural. Not all of these factors play a part in every adolescent who abuses alcohol, but one of these factors is usually present. Psychological disorders have been found in both American, and Taiwan adolescents who abuse alcohol. The health risks of adolescent alcohol abuse are great. Alcohol affects the physiology of a young person. It disrupts the genetics and hormonal balances that are critical in the

Alcohol consumption by underage drinkers has and will continue to be a problem within our society. Adolescents view alcohol as a way of risk taking deviant behavior in order to rebel against parents and even society’s restrictions of what they consider to be adulthood. The following will describe the problem alcohol presents in adolescent’s lives. “Alcohol is a dependence-producing drug through its reinforcing properties and neuro-adaptation in the brain. It is an immunosuppressant, increasing the risk of communicable diseases” (Saunders and Rey 2011). “Alcohol use among American adolescents represents a significant public health problem. Teen drinking is associated with a range of health and social problems, including poor school performance, crime, and injury and death due to automobile and other accidents” (Treiman and Beck 1996). “For young people, alcohol is a potent symbol both of socialization into adult

The adolescent period of a human is the developmental phase of child to adult. During this time in a human’s life the entire body is developing rapidly, there are many factors that can affect the natural development. Alcohol is one of the most common depressants used and abused by adolescents which can alter the development of the body, especially the development of the brain. “When data from the World Health Organization’s Global Burden of Disease study were used to calculate cause-specific disability-adjusted life years for young people aged 10–24 years, the main risk factors were found to be alcohol.” (Marshall, 2014) There are many reasons why adolescents use alcohol, whether they are aware of the potential consequences

The adolescent phase of life is a vital time of developmental sensitivity. Due to such vulnerability at this stage, substance use amongst this demographic has been linked to detrimental short-term and long-term mental health outcomes. In this essay, the mentioned articles generally refer to substance use as smoking tobacco, alcohol consumption and any other illegal drug use including stimulants, hallucinogens, opioids, etc. Evidence-based research has reinforced the correlation of substance use among adolescents and the behavioral, social, and educational consequences associated with this use (Springer et al. 2004). These negative outcomes are acknowledged as a threat to public health. McGorry and Purcell (2009) indicate that social networks

When discussing Early onset usage of drugs/alcohol and how it is one of the best predictors of adolescent/adult drug substance abuse, we must go in deeper to the rising conflict behind why early adolescents are turning to drugs at a young age. The sayings such as "monkey see, monkey do" proclaim we are the victims to our own demise. If we are brought up in what society deems a troubled home, we are more likely to turn to drugs and alcohol. Contributing factors to this example can be seen as it being the way the individuals was taught to deal with situations through witnessing their family members abuse substance. In some cases, Children can get introduced to substance from outside factors like family friends, babysitters, etc. One thing is for sure society fails to meet the requirements of

Drug abuse in America is a major problem. Especially among teenagers. Drugs have hurt the lives of nearly 40 percent of all teenagers in America. Either with health problems, DWIs, highway crashes, arrests, impaired school and job performance. These drugs that teenagers use range from Alcohol, LSD, Marijuana, and even Cigarettes. Most of the teenagers that are involved in drug abuse have either, broken families, parents that are drug abusers, a unstable environment where they are constantly moving from place to place, or there parents aren't exactly making a lot of money and they are never around because they are trying to make enough money for them to survive. But even to most ordinary teenager can

There is a plethora of addictions in which one can become addicted to. There are also no perquisites for anyone to become addicted to anything. When dealing with addictions regarding adolescents or anyone, it is important that the addiction is addressed and dealt with early before it becomes an even bigger problem (Siegel, 2014). It has documented in numerous sources that out of all of the age groups, the most likely to form a negative addiction is adolescents (Siegel, 2014). Adolescents seem to be influenced the easiest and are the most likely to form bad habits. It has also been noted, that many adolescents die prematurely due to things that are preventable and treatable (Feldman, 2014). Research has shown that people who formed addictions such as alcohol, tobacco, and marijuana, formed these negative habits during their adolescent years (Feldman, 2014). It is important that we ensure that we educate our youth and make them aware of the long term consequences of them engaging in their negative addictive behaviors. Being that addictions are preventable and avoidable, we need to ensure that we take the appropriate measures to prevent addictions from occurring and also educating our youth on the effects of engaging in addicting

The topic of this paper will be substance abuse in adolescents. I will mainly focus on family structure, neurobiology, prevention, and treatment of the adolescents. I decided to research this topic because many of my acquaintances and family members have had to deal with substance abuse, especially during their adolescent phase. The driving point for me was that I wanted to understand why substance abuse in adolescents kept occurring and how I could help make the adolescents that are in my life situations better.