Compare and contrast the findings of the most recent Monitoring the Future survey and the National Survey on Drug Use and Health

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

The most recent MTF survey in 2011 indicates that, with few exceptions, drug use among American adolescents continued to decline from the peak levels reached in 1996 and 1997 . Annual drug use was down by almost two-fifths (38 percent) for 8th graders during this time period, while reductions have been considerably lower for those in the 10th (19 percent) and 12th (6 percent) grades. From 2010 to 2011, annual use of OxyContin, a prescription painkiller narcotic, was marginally lower among 12th graders (5.1 percent to 4.9 percent), 10th graders (4.6 percent to 3.9 percent), and 8th graders (2.1 percent to 1.8 percent). Annual use among all grades combined (3.4 percent in 2011) was also marginally lower from the peak year of 2009, when it was 3.9 percent.

The latest NSDUH results show that rates of illicit drug use in the past month by adolescent males and females are similar for overall illicit drug use (10.4 percent for males and 9.8 percent for females). The most recent survey shows that current marijuana use is more common among male youths (8.3 percent) compared to their female counterparts (6.4 percent), while female youth are more likely to self-report nonmedical use of prescription psychotherapeutic drugs (3.7 percent compared to 2.3 percent for males) and prescription pain relievers (3.0 percent compared to 2.0 percent for males).