Alcohol use is more prevalent among young people than any other drug. The average age at which a young person takes his first drink is just 13, and 80 percent of all college students drink.

"Yet the consequences of underage drinking are described as 'astonishing in their range and magnitude' by the Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth at Georgetown University, increasing morbidity and mortality rates by 200 percent between middle childhood and early adulthood."

About 5,000 people under the age of 21 die every year in alcohol-related incidents. Those who aren't killed may be faced with the early onset of alcoholism or developmental delays that they'll carry throughout their lives. Source: Redwood City Daily News

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Labels: binge_drinking, long_term_drug_use

The National Institute of Health is funding a $4 million, four-year study of the long-term effects of marijuana. Dr. Barbara Mason, director of Scripp's Laboratory of Clinical Psychopharmacology, will lead the study which involves three other labs.

About one in nine people who try marijuana become dependent, according to research form the University of Michigan. While alcohol clears the human body within hours, marijuana lingers and can be detected up to 30 days after use. Some symptoms of marijuana withdrawal are sleep disturbances, anxiety, and irritability.

The new research will investigate whether marijuana use affects learning, judgment, and self-control. Dr. Mason and others will also study whether marijuana affects young people differently than adults.

"The thing that troubles a lot of us is that marijuana has an appeal to younger people," said Dr. Reese Jones, a professor of psychiatry at the University of San Francisco. "In recent time we have learned that the adolescent brain is so different in many ways than the final adult version. There is a lot of reason to think that all these issues may be a bigger deal for young people."

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Labels: effects, long_term_drug_use, marijuana

A team of analysts from the U.K. has determined that years of study on marijuana have proven that the drug increases the risk of psychosis. The specific factors that cause the increased risk could not be proven, but researchers say the connection between marijuana and psychosis is undeniable.

"Doctors have long suspected a connection and say the latest findings underline the need to highlight marijuana's long-term risks. The research, paid for by the British Health Department, is being published Friday in medical journal The Lancet."

The team analyzed 35 studies that tracked tens of thousands of people for anywhere from one to 27 years. They looked for connections to both psychotic illnesses and cognitive disorders. Interestingly, no connection to cognitive disorders could be found. Read more at ABCLocal.go.com.

Adolescent substance abuse can have lasting implications that affect teens in may ways. Learn about ways to help teenagers at DrugRehabTreatment.com.

Labels: long_term_drug_use, marijuana, psychosis

Shawn Bridges, a former truck driver whose body was ravaged by years of methamphetamine use, passed away this week. But not before his long and painful journey was chronicled and made into a 29-minute documentary. His hope was that his story would keep others away from the highly addictive drug.

"He was extremely satisfied, wanting to do more in getting the word out and showing kids what meth harm does."

Shawn was bedridden most of his final year, fed through a feeding tube. During his last few months, his family says he often slurred his words, and sometimes wasn't able to speak at all. Chris Rossetti, who filmed the original documentary, plans to produce a sequel that will chronicle Shawn's final year, in hopes that this final message will keep kids from making the same mistake that eventually cost Shawn his life. Read more online.

Labels: death, long_term_drug_use, meth