WHAT JIMMY DOING IN THERE?
AN UPDATE ON TEEN DRUG TRENDS
By Angie C. Anders
Southern University of Shreveport Louisiana
Human Services Department
EARLY TIMES OF ADOLESCENT SUBSTANCE ABUSE:
Drunkard Children (1780-1900)
• Regularly consumed diluted alcohol
• No widespread misuse until early 1800s
• Particularly orphaned children
• Alcoholics between ages 15-20 counted as 10%
admissions into inebriated homes
• 12 year olds were being admitted for detoxification by 1890s
THROUGHOUT HISTORY…
• Alcohol
• Marijuana
• Cocaine
• Sedatives
• Benzodiazepines
• Hallucinogens
TODAY’S TRENDS IN ADOLESCENT SUBSTANCE
ABUSE:
• Common Cold Medications
• Nasal Decongestion Aids
• Household Cleaners
• Products sold for other uses and manipulated in
order to achieve inebriation.
TRENDS…
"There has always been fashion to drugs of the day ... Chasing
the problem one drug at a time is a costly game of whack-amole where use of one drug is addressed only to see the
problem pop up in a different form.“
~ Susan Foster, Vice President and Director of Policy
Research and Analysis, at the National Center on Addiction
and Substance Abuse at Columbia University.
SYNTHETICS
Synthetic marijuana (MJ) often called “Spice” or “K2”
has become the second most popular illegal drug
among American young people.
DANGERS OF SYNTHETICS
~Emily Bauer
(Damaged from Synthetics)
o High potential for abuse
o No medical benefit
o Illegal to sell, buy, or possess
them.
BHO (SHATTER, WAX, HONEY COMB)
BHO – which costs between
$25 and $100 a gram, depending
on where you live – comes in a variety
of consistencies: from hard, amber-like
stuff ("shatter") to soft, golden goop
("budder" or "earwax"). The basic process
is surprisingly simple: Pack herb (often
leftover parts after the buds have been
removed) into a tube and force a solvent
(usually butane) through it. The solvent is
evaporated off, leaving just the plant's
resins – which are chock-full of psychoactive chemicals, including astronomic
levels of THC that can exceed 80 percent.
SHROOMS
o Contain psilocin and psilocybin.
o Cause an effect similar to LSD
o Using “Shrooms/Magic Mushrooms”
is not without dangers.
o You might pick a poisonous
mushroom.
o
o
o
o
Loss of reality
Severe anxiety
Paranoia
You may experience a bad trip.
Molly, short for molecule, is considered to be pure MDMA, unlike Ecstasy, which
generally is laced with other ingredients, such as caffeine or methamphetamine.
The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) considers MDMA to be a Schedule I
controlled substance, which means it has a high potential for abuse, and no
accepted use in medical treatment.
WHO IS “MOLLY”?
THE DANGERS OF MOLLY…
• Confusion, anxiety, depression, paranoia, sleep problems,
and drug craving, tremors, involuntary teeth clenching,
muscle cramps, nausea, faintness, chills, sweating, and
blurred vision.
• Interfere with the ability to regulate body temperature,
resulting in a sharp increase in body temperature
(hyperthermia), leading to liver, kidney and cardiovascular
failure.
• Severe dehydration
LEAN, PURPLE DRANK…..SIZZUR
“Purple Drank” or Sizzur is a
combination of
Promethazine/Codeine
mixed with Sprite and a few Jolly
Ranchers or any other hard candy.
With increased tolerance and/or
subsequent addiction, as users
chase the high from sizzurp,
overdosing on these potentially
lethal substances becomes more
likely.
INHALANTS - HOUSEHOLD
PRODUCTS
The products are called inhalants and include
glue, gasoline, nail polish remover, cleaning
fluid, paint, lighter fluid, the air from whipped cream
cans and hairspray.
Because they are easy to find, inhalants are more
popular among younger children. Six percent of
eighth-graders have admitted to using inhalants,
according to a recent survey of young people.
can cause problems with attention, memory and
problem-solving; muscle weakness; tremors; and
mood changes. They also can change a person’s
heart rate or oxygen in the body and lead to serious
health problems and death. Children who abuse household products also are more likely to
abuse or try other drugs.
TRIPLE C
Triple C is a slang term for the over-the-counter medication Coricidin
HBP Cough & Cold, which contains dextromethorphan, or DXM. Triple C ( Coricidin HBP
Cough & Cold) is available as red tablets containing
30 milligrams of DXM. Law enforcement sources indicate that teenagers and young adults
are the principal
abusers of Triple C.
While under the influence of
the drug, which can last for as
long as 6 hours, abusers risk
injuring themselves and others
Because of the drug’s effects on
visual perception and
cognitive processes.
ENERGY DRINKS & FOUR LOKO
Energy drinks (such as Red Bull, Monster, and Reload) are sold
legally and advertised to boost energy. They contain stimulants,
usually caffeine, and sometimes other stimulants, as well as sugar. In
2011 in answer to the question, "About how many [energy drinks] do
you drink per day on average?" The proportions indicating any recent
use were 35% of 8th graders and 29% of both 10th and 12th graders.
FOUR LOKO: In its original form, the drink is the equivalent of four beers and
one cup of Starbucks coffee - a dangerous combination that can fool
partygoers into thinking they're not that drunk - while packing a potent punch
of alcohol.
HUFFING FREON
•
It destroys cells, lining in the nose and esophagus. It’s very toxic and not easy to control
the dose,” says Lynn Pimentel a Director at West Care in Fresno. Her facility has treated
teens who have abused the drug. She says they’re turning to Freon because it’s easy to
access.
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“It’s free at times because it’s in the garage it’s at home and it’s under the sink. It’s
abundant and it’s legal.”
HAND SANITIZER
Teens have ended up in emergency rooms after drinking
alcohol that had been extracted from
hand sanitizer. Through
a distillation process, the
kids were able to create a
moonshine with a whopping
60 percent alcohol content.
BENZEDREX (PROPYLHEXEDRINE)
The Benzedrex inhaler is typically used for nasal congestion
and gives the stimulating effect of amphetamines. The cotton
inside the inhaler can be ingested or the substance inside
combined with soda pop. Intravenous abuse of Propylhexedrine
(Benzedrex) presents a high risk of brainstem dysfunction in
young adults. This agent is called "stove-top speed". In a study
reported by Canadian Journal of Neurological Sciences, 7 patients
had transient diplopia (double vision) , within seconds after
injection.
BATH SALTS
Bath Salts are products containing designer drugs—synthetic cathinones, which are stimulants
that have effects something like amphetamines. Questions on the use of these powerful and
dangerous drugs were included in the survey for the first time in 2012.
Fortunately, a relatively
small proportion of teens
indicate having used bath
salts in the prior 12 months.
The annual prevalence
rates were 0.8%, 0.6%, and
1.3% for grades 8, 10,
and 12, respectively.
“SPEED”…
o Developed solely for those properly
diagnosed with the disorder ADHD
o Used recreationally by those whom
admit to not having ADHD
o Perform better with its aid or simply
enjoy the high
o Experience a heightened sense of
motivation, focus, and concentration.
PRESCRIPTION DRUG ABUSE
Benzodiazepines & Opiates
The survey continues to
show that most teens obtain
prescription drugs like
amphetamines, tranquilizers,
or narcotics other than heroin,
for free from friends
and family; roughly 68%
of 12th graders, for example,
report getting prescription
pain relievers this way.
Adderall
VODKA TAMPONS
Absorbing alcohol through a
mucous membrane allows for
the alcohol to be absorbed
The use of vodka-soaked tampons to get drunk
directly to the bloodstream,
faster and without having booze on your breath,
leading to a more rapid
is known as "slimming”.
intoxication.
This is definitely not just girls.
Guys will also use it.
Since the alcohol is not being
absorbed through the stomach,
a person cannot vomit if they
have too much to drink. And
once alcohol enters the
bloodstream, you can’t get it
back out. This significantly
increases the risk for alcohol
poisoning.
FAINTING GAME
When teens apply pressure around a friend’s neck to make them faint, they’re
constricting the windpipe and cutting off the brain’s supply of oxygen. After the
fainting, the pressure around the neck is released, and oxygen rushes back to
the brain, resulting in a brief, euphoric high. They may think it’s fun, but it’s
deadly.
JENKEM
Human excreta is
scooped up from the
edges of the sewer
ponds in old cans and
containers which are
covered with a
polyethylene bag and
left to stew or ferment
for a week.
THE DAMAGE…
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Memory loss
Procrastination
Physical Health
Grades plummet
Nutritional deficits
Long-term addiction
Difficulty concentrating
Ability to get along with others
Empties your bank account
Difficulty coping with everyday stressors
Judgment: unable to make good decisions, to make them
quickly, or to be realistic when you make them
TODAYS DRUG TRENDS
MONITORING THE FUTURE (MTF)
Monitoring the Future (MTF) is an ongoing study of the behaviors, attitudes, and
values of American secondary school students, college students, and young adults.
Each year, a total of approximately 50,000 8th, 10th and 12th grade students are
surveyed. It has been conducted annually by the University of Michigan’s Institute for
Social Research since its inception in 1975.
-Annual follow-up questionnaires are mailed for a number of years after their initial
participation.
LEVELS OF CARE:
 Early Intervention
 Outpatient
 Intensive Outpatient
 Residential/Inpatient
 Medically managed intensive inpatient
TREATMENT APPROACHES
• Harm Reduction
• Brief Intervention (B.I.)
• Individual Sessions
• Medically Assisted Therapies
• Parental contracts
REFERENCES
•
www.erowid.com
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www.cps.ca/documents/position/harm-reduction-risky-health-behaviours
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www.nih.gov/news/health/dec2011/nida-14.htp
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www.drugfreeworld.org
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www.monitoringthefuture.org
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http://teens.drugabuse.gov/drug-facts/inhalants
QUESTIONS???