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 Friends
Factor in Early Alcohol, Drug Use
by Elaine Carey, The Toronto Star, May 19, 2004
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Friends play the
biggest role in determining whether adolescents will experiment
with drugs and alcohol, according to a new study.
Youth, between the ages of 12 and 15, who reported that all or
most of their friends had used alcohol, were nearly 11 times
more likely to have been drunk in the past year than those with
fewer friends who drink, Statistics Canada reported yesterday.
And their odds of using drugs were 33 times as high if their
friends used them.
Over-all, 22 per cent of the adolescents surveyed said they had
been intoxicated at least once and 19 per cent had tried
marijuana.
The analysis is based on responses from 4,296 adolescents, their
parents and their teachers.
Reports of alcohol use rose steadily as they got older and
almost half the 15 year olds said they had been drunk at least
once.
Peers played a bigger role in their drug and alcohol use than
whether their parents were problem drinkers, said the study,
Statistics Canada's first look at alcohol and drug use in teens.
Of those who did drink, the average age when they had their
first drink was 12.4 years and the age when they got drunk for
the first time was 13.2.
For those who used drugs, glue sniffing began at age 11.3 and
marijuana use at age 13.1.
But it's not possible to determine whether their friends are
influencing them or whether "birds of a feather flock together,"
meaning that young teens seek friends who share similar
attitudes, the study said.
The findings are similar to those found in the annual Ontario
Drug Use Survey, said Ed Adlaf, a research scientist with the
Centre for Addiction and Mental Health.
Alcohol and marijuana use have been fairly stable, he said.
But cigarette smoking is declining as well as the use of LSD and
ecstasy, he added.
The Statistics Canada study found that teens who were doing
poorly in school were more than twice as likely to have got
drunk in the past year and those from families with a
step-parent were twice as likely to use drugs than those from
two-parent families.
Although boys were more likely to report having a drink, the
percentage of girls who got drunk and used drugs other than
marijuana was slightly higher.
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