Journal of Pediatric Neurological Disorders

Adolescent Substance Abuse

The use and misuse of adolescent substances are serious issues that contribute to important medical, psychological and legal consequences later in life. Although adolescent abuse of substances can be difficult to prevent and treat, scientists have discovered a number of strategies that are effective among this high-risk population. Substance use disorder rates among adolescents can be less straightforward than using statistics, as diagnostic criteria and differences in shared nomenclature can make it difficult to track diagnoses on a large scale , particularly since adolescents are often diagnosed using dependence and problem-solving criteria developed for an adult population. Adolescent substance use rates suggest that efforts to prevent and intervene specifically targeting young people are critical. While specific trends in substance use vary a great deal among adolescents over time , a number of clinical and school-based evidence-based treatment and prevention efforts have been shown to be effective in reducing substance use among adolescents, regardless of the substance being used or whether a substance use disorder is present. Parents and role models who consistently set healthy social norms for alcohol and drug use throughout childhood and adolescence lay the strongest foundations for later life to prevent unhealthy substance use behaviours.

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