Trends in the Co-Abuse of Alcohol & Drugs
According to a recent SAMHSA report on treatment admissions over a 10-year period, the co-abuse of alcohol and drugs continues to be a significant problem.
Treatment Episode Data Set (TEDS): 1996-2006: National Admissions to Substance Abuse Treatment Services (PDF size: 7.84 MB) reports that in 2006, 39 percent of all admissions reported problems with both alcohol and drugs—21 percent reported primary drug abuse with secondary alcohol abuse, and 18 percent reported primary alcohol abuse with secondary drug abuse.
Primary alcohol abuse declined from 51 percent of TEDS admissions in 1996 to 40 percent in 2006. Primary drug abuse increased from 47 percent in 1996 to 58 percent in 2005 and 2006.
The chart illustrates five separate data sets represented in different colors. Primary alcohol abuse (in red) declined from 51 percent of admissions in 1996 to 40 percent of admissions 10 years later in 2006.
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Source: SAMHSA Office of Applied Studies. Treatment Episode Data Set (TEDS) 1996-2006. Data received through October 9, 2007. Figure 2. Trends in the Co-Abuse of Alcohol and Drugs. July 2008.
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Read more about the information in the chart on page 13 of Treatment Episode Data Set (TEDS): 1996-2006: National Admissions to Substance Abuse Treatment Services (PDF size: 7.84 MB).