I think a lot of parents would be surprised to hear that the leading cause of death amongst kids 16-19 is car accidents. I understand that this scary statistic is created by a lot of variables. Being a parent of two young boys, I also believe that this problem needs to be fixed, and that there are ways to cut down on these heartbreaking fatalities. Drugs and driving doesn’t get nearly the publicity of drunk-driving, but it is a significant factor in teenage auto accidents that cannot be overlooked. More kids are driving under the influence of drugs than most of us parents care to know, but it is time that we understand and address this problem with teenagers around the nation.
The problem is that while teenagers have generally been educated about the dangers of hard drugs, there is relatively little concern over the improper use of prescription drugs. Cocaine and heroin are no longer being used to the same extent as they used to. Today’s drug problem is more under the radar, but is dangerous nevertheless. Prescription drug overuse or use of any kind when not prescribed are topics that are hardly mentioned in drug education, but need to be if we are going to solve this problem. If you are a parent who doesn’t believe that this is an issue, then consider this statistic: according to a 2009 survey from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 20% of teens said they have taken a prescription drug without a doctor’s prescription. This isn’t something that appears to be going away anytime soon, considering that number is higher than it ever has been. 5,000 kids between 16 and 20 die every year from auto accidents, and drug use significantly affects this number.
So now that we understand the issue at hand, the next step is figuring out what we can do to fix it. The first step in my mind is to educate ourselves, so we can better communicate with our kids. The first drug that we need to understand is weed. Most people who currently have a teenager are probably already familiar with the effects of weed, because it has been used for such a long time. The mind-altering nature of the drug is especially dangerous if combined with driving, yet polls show that around 12% of high school seniors have driven while under its influence. Weed has similar effects to alcohol on the road, as it decreases attentiveness, alters perception of time and speed, and reduces the ability to draw on knowledge gained from past experiences. Along with weed use, there are drugs that can be legally prescribed, which can be fatally misused. These drugs can be seen as harmless by misinformed teenagers, but can severely impair a driver on the road.
Because some of these drugs are so widely prescribed, you may have heard of some of them. Amongst the most common are Adderall, Ritalin, Xanax, Valium, Demerol, Vicodin, and OxyContin. There are some very legitimate uses for these drugs, but their abundance leads to deadly misuse by teenagers who don’t know better. When this is combined with driving, the mistake can greatly increase the risk of a fatal accident. The key to cutting down on this growing problem is education. Schools and parents need to let their teenagers know that improper use of these drugs is illegal and incredibly dangerous. It is time that we understand today’s teenage culture and adjust the message of driving safety to include the dangers of drugs and driving. Let your kids know that if they see or hear of somebody trying to drive under the influence of drugs, they can save that person’s life by persuading them to put away their keys.
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