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-- WITH PHOTO -- TO HEALTH, MEDICAL, AND NATIONAL EDITORS:
Parents in the Dark
PLYMOUTH, Minn., March 6, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- As youth
drug and alcohol abuse continues to grow, many parents say they are
uninformed -- and largely unconcerned -- about the threat to their
children.
So finds a new nationwide survey commissioned by the Hazelden Betty
Ford Foundation, the nation's largest nonprofit addiction treatment
provider.
"These startling findings suggest that some parents are
under-concerned about the dangers of alcohol and other drug use by
their children and are overly confident they would recognize signs of
their children's use," said Audrey Klein, PhD, executive director of
Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation's Butler Center for Research. "This is
particularly worrisome given the consequences of teen alcohol and
other drug abuse -- including poor performance in school, a higher
rate of accidents, unintentional overdoses, violence, sexual trauma
and legal issues -- and, unfortunately in some cases, even death."
"Research has shown that parental involvement is an effective way to
prevent chemical use and addiction among youth," continued Klein. "Yet
this national survey revealed a remarkable lack of parental awareness
and concern about this important issue." Among the key findings of the
poll are:
-- Lack of concern by most parents. Nearly six in 10 (59.2 parents
of youth ages 12 to 24 say that they are not concerned about their
children's possible use or abuse of alcohol or other drugs. This
despite government surveys showing illicit drug use among teenagers
remains high.
-- Easy access to drugs and alcohol. One in four homes reports having
prescription painkillers (opioids) in unlocked cabinets or accessible
to their children. More than half of the homes surveyed (54.4 have
alcohol out in the open.
-- False sense of knowledge. Even though almost eight in 10 (78.9
parents think they have adequate education about child alcohol and
other drug abuse, on average they could name only two warning signs
out of 38 commonly known indications.
-- Don't know where to turn for help. Approximately one in five
parents (18 admitted they did not know where to turn for help if
their child is struggling with alcohol or drugs. One in five (20
said they would seek out their primary care physician, yet most
physicians are uncomfortable discussing alcohol and drug use with
patients and feel unprepared to adequately diagnose addiction.
Most doctors lack training in identifying substance abuse. Less than
20 percent of primary care physicians consider themselves "very
prepared to identify alcohol or drug dependence," compared to more
than 80 percent who are very comfortable diagnosing hypertension and
diabetes, according to the National Center on Substance Abuse at
Columbia University.
Resources are available for parents to educate themselves on how to
recognize signs of drug use and discuss the issue with their kids on
the Hazelden webpage:
http://www.hazelden.org/web/public/addiction-fact-sheet-plymouth.page
http://www.hazelden.org/web/public/res\_talkwithkids.page
The survey of 2,454 parents in the United States was conducted by Q
Market Research. Findings have a confidence interval of 95% and a
margin of error of +/- 1.9%. For a copy of the report, "A matter of
concern: Survey finds parents underestimate risks of alcohol or other
drug use," please visit www.hazelden.org/youth.
In response to the need to help more young people, the Hazelden Betty
Ford Foundation has expanded its gender-specific treatment facility
for adolescents and young adults in Plymouth, Minnesota by 40 percent.
In addition, the Foundation has added youth outpatient treatment
programs and provides free recovery coaching for parents after their
child has been discharged as well as a social community with support
groups for parents.
About the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation The Hazelden Betty Ford
Foundation helps people reclaim their lives from the disease of
addiction. It is the nation's largest nonprofit treatment provider,
with a legacy that began in 1949 and includes the 1982 founding of the
Betty Ford Center. With 15 sites in California, Minnesota, Oregon,
Illinois, New York, Florida, Massachusetts, Colorado and Texas, the
Foundation offers recovery solutions nationwide and across the entire
continuum of care for youth and adults. It includes the largest
recovery publishing house in the country, a fully-accredited graduate
school of addiction studies, an addiction research center, an
education arm for medical professionals and a unique children's
program, and is the nation's leader in advocacy and policy for
treatment and recovery. Learn more at www.hazeldenbettyford.org.
Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140210/DC61972LOGO
SOURCE Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation
-0- 03/06/2014
/CONTACT: Christine Anderson, Hazelden, 651-213-4231, canderson@hazelden.org
/Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140210/DC61972LOGO
/Web Site: http://www.hazelden.org
CO: Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation
ST: Minnesota
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-- DC78375 --
0000 03/06/2014 16:59:00 EDT http://www.prnewswire.com
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