Pubdate: Sun, 20 Mar 2005 Source: Eagle-Tribune, The (MA) Copyright: 2005 The Eagle-Tribune Contact: http://www.eagletribune.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/129 Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/youth.htm (Youth) EDUCATION IS KEY IN FIGHTING DRUG ABUSE OUR VIEW Of the 1,500 students from seventh grade through high school who took the survey, 19 percent -- nearly one in five -- have tried a hard drug such as cocaine, LSD, heroin or ecstasy. The numbers from a Haverhill survey of drug use among teens were startling. Of the 1,500 students from seventh grade through high school who took the survey, 19 percent -- nearly one in five -- have tried a hard drug such as cocaine, LSD, heroin or ecstasy. That's up from 15 percent in 2002 and 17 percent in 2003. And 13 percent said they had used one of those drugs in the past 30 days. Those numbers are moving in the wrong direction. We have to convince kids that playing with these drugs is deadly. Essex County District Attorney Jonathan Blodgett believes education, not random drug testing, is the approach to take. Blodgett wants to educate young people on the dangers of drugs, including prescription painkillers such as OxyContin and other opiates. Dr. Patricia B. Cronin of the North Essex Prevention Coalition, who oversaw administering of the survey at the high school, agrees. We've reported on the scourge of heroin addiction and the havoc it wreaks on young lives. Sure, kids have all heard the basic message that drugs are bad. But have they really seen what addiction can do to people's lives, people they might know like their friends and classmates? We need to get to kids early and not just provide the basic anti-drug message but shock them with the gory details. Show them the families split apart, the drug-related suicides, the promising careers thrown away for a brief high. It's a tough message to deliver. Kids in general believe they will live forever, that they're immune to the misfortunes that befall others. That's why it's especially important to teach them how easy it is to get hooked. Let them hear stories from others who thought they could try heroin just once. Drug testing may be one part of an anti-drug effort. But it alone won't solve the problem. A drug test doesn't stop anyone from using drugs. A kid who tests positive has already made the wrong choice. We have to get to the kids before they make those mistakes. Parents have to get behind the effort for more drug education. They need to contact their legislators and call for the funding needed to support programs like the one Blodgett advocates. If we don't make this effort, we can expect the percentages of students using hard drugs to climb even higher. - --- MAP posted-by: Derek