New Data on Adolescents and Risk

Only 40.0 percent of adolescents perceived great risk from having five or more drinks of alcohol once or twice a week, according to a new short report from SAMHSA’s National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH).

Perceptions of Risk from Substance Use among Adolescents also relates that just over one-third (34.2 percent) of adolescents perceived great risk from smoking marijuana once a month.

Varies by Substance

For some substances, half or more of all adolescents perceived great risk associated with their use.

For example, 69.3 percent of adolescents perceived great risk from smoking one or more packs of cigarettes per day, 57.4 percent perceived great risk from trying heroin once or twice, 50.9 percent perceived great risk from trying LSD once or twice, and 49.7 percent perceived great risk from using cocaine once a month.

Perception of Great Risk from Substance Use among Persons Aged 12 to 17, by Age Group: 2007 and 2008

Varies by Age

The percentage of adolescents who perceived great risk from smoking one or more packs of cigarettes per day was stable across age groups.

Related Stories

		Parents: Prevention Means Being Involved
		Under the Influence: Fathers, Adolescents, and Alcohol Use
		Are Prevention Messages Working?
		Underage Drinking & Media Literacy

However, the perceptions of risk associated with having five or more drinks of alcohol once or twice a week and from smoking marijuana once a month decreased with age, while the perceptions of risk increased with age for cocaine use, heroin use, and LSD use (see chart).

Find out more by downloading Perceptions of Risk from Substance Use among Adolescents.