Adolescent and young adult alcohol and other drug use is a serious problem, not just legally, but developmentally. The human brain is not fully developed until an individual is in their early 20’s. With this being the case, adding mind-altering, foreign substances into the body is a serious issue that can have lifetime effects. There’s the obvious problem of how drugs affect the individual using them, but there’s also the issue of how substance use affects the friends and family of the using individual and the community at large. Young people need to be given the facts about what they are putting into their bodies and how their use affects them, the people around them, and the surrounding community. With this information, individuals will be making informed decisions when it comes to drug use.
Children are the future of our world and their knowledge should be something that we all invest into. Proper education about substance abuse is a crucial preventative measure for kids and teenagers. When adults share factual information about substance abuse, it helps kids develop a better sense of drug abuse awareness. Without proper educational measures about the harmful effects of drugs, kids may develop increased risks for becoming curious about drugs, falling prey to peer pressure, and try drugs themselves. When kids experiment with drugs it places them in a high-risk category for developing eventual drug tolerance, dependence, and addiction.