The Upcoming School Year May Bring More Than Books
August is upon us and a new year of school is about to start. Young people are bouncing, bubbly, and chattering with excitement. School brings old friends, new friends, old routines, new adventures and learning experiences. Most of those learning experiences are good ones, but it’s what a child learns that parents don’t know about that can be life-threatening.
Canadian, OK (PRWEB) August 20, 2006 -- August is upon us and a new year of school is about to start. Young people are bouncing, bubbly, and chattering with excitement. School brings old friends, new friends, old routines, new adventures and learning experiences. Most of those learning experiences are good ones, but it’s what a child learns that parents don’t know about that can be life-threatening.
As the new school year starts a student will be reviewing information previously studied while learning new terms, and some of the terms that you may hear (from children of all ages) during this school year are: addiction, AIDS, dependence, drugs, trafficking, narcotics, prevention, treatment and tolerance, to list only a few. Although you may be surprised, students of any age need to know these terms and have a full understanding of exactly what they mean and the effects of what they refer to.
Another subject that will certainly make an appearance in schools this year is prescription and/or over-the-counter drugs. Children often confuse the fact that these substances are legal with the assumption that it is safe to abuse them. According to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, a relatively high rate of prescription painkiller abuse is occurring among eighth, tenth, and twelfth graders. Pharmaceutical drugs are available throughout most of the country and their abuse is at incredibly high levels. Much of this easy availability is due to the ever-increasing number of rogue Internet pharmacies and neighborhood “pill mills.” At either location, a person can obtain prescription drugs with little or no resistance.
Simple, honest communication of the facts to children who will most certainly encounter drugs as some point in their lives is the most effective prevention measure a parent can take. These measures must start at an early age and must start at home. Parents who rely solely on drug education in schools are doing their children a disservice. A parent who imparts understandable information regarding the dangers of drugs and alcohol to their children at an early age will reap the rewards later in life when their children choose to abstain from use because they are fully informed. Scare tactics can do more harm than good and can cause a child to become curious rather than aware.
Mind-altering, painkilling and amphetamine-based prescription drugs, as well as illicit street drugs, are swallowing up a society that was once considered safe. According to data obtained from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health in a 2004 study, 6.1% of individuals aged 12 and older had engaged in the non-medical use of psychotherapeutics, a figure second only to the use of marijuana (10.6%) and much higher than the use of cocaine (2.4%), methamphetamine (0.6%), or heroin (0.2%). Non-medical use of prescription painkillers is relatively high among teenagers and includes a considerable increase in the abuse of OxyContin among twelfth graders, which has been the cause of many deaths of young people.
Narconon Arrowhead reminds parents that returning to school can be adventurous for kids and is also a time when many kids become exposed to drugs for the first time. Take the time to speak to your children about drug and alcohol abuse and help make a better society for us all.
For more information or help, contact Narconon Arrowhead today at 1-800-468-6933 or visit www.stopaddiction.com. Free downloadable drug information is also available at www.narconon-drug-education.com. Act now before it’s too late.
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