Drug Rehab Warns Parents About Idle Time for Kids During Summer Months

(PRWEB) June 17, 2007 -- School's out and there is a feeling of freedom in the air. For some teens this means spending time with old friends and meeting new ones. For others this means no adult supervision and plenty of opportunities to find and use drugs or alcohol. Statistics show that many of our teens are doing just that.

Every day during summer vacation, an average of 6,000 youth try marijuana for the first time. Twenty-four percent of teens drink alcohol for the first time during summer break. Unfortunately, for many, drug or alcohol abuse does not stop there.

According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, one in ten of our children aged 12-17 binge drink each month. Eighty-three percent of high school seniors state that it is "easy to get" marijuana and nearly 40% of them smoked it in 2005. In 2001, almost 3 million youths aged 12-17 had used prescription-type drugs non-medicinal at least once in their lifetime.

All told, a full 50% of high school students have used an illegal drug by the time they graduate, more than 20% of them starting in eighth grade.

"Do you think drug dealers have missed the fact that school-aged children have plenty of free time during the summer?" asks Ryan Thorpe, Director of Admissions at Narconon Arrowhead, one of the country's leading drug and alcohol rehabilitation and educations centers located in Canadian, Oklahoma. "Statistics show higher initial drug and alcohol use in the summer. The Drug Enforcement Agency reports increased sales of club drugs-most popular among teens and young adults-during the summer months, and marijuana availability increases because domestically grown plants flourish in the warmer months. This is a critical time for parents to educate themselves and their children on the dangers of drugs and addiction. This is why we are making the Healing Addicted Lives booklet available to parents at no charge. We want parents to truly understand how addiction occurs so they can use this knowledge to effectively educate their children on the problem"

To receive you own copy of Healing Addicted Lives at no charge, call 1-800-468-6933 today or visit the website www.healingaddictedlives.com. The Narconon program was founded in 1966 by William Benitez in Arizona State Prison, and is based on the humanitarian works of L. Ron Hubbard. In more than 120 centers around the world, Narconon programs restore drug and alcohol abusers and addicts to a clean and sober lifestyle.

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