Did you know?
According to research by the Monitoring the Future project,
"Overall, it is important to note that supply reduction -- that
is, reducing the availability of drugs -- does not appear to
have played as major a role as many had assumed in three of
the most important downturns in illicit drug use that have occurred
to date, namely, those for marijuana, cocaine, and ecstasy (see
Figures 8-4, 8-5, and 8-6). In the case of cocaine, perceived
availability actually rose during much of the period of the
downturn in use. (These data are corroborated by data from the
Drug Enforcement Administration on trends in the price and
purity of cocaine on the streets.) In the case of marijuana,
perceived availability has remained very high for 12th graders over
the past 31 years, while use dropped substantially from 1979
through 1992. Perceived availability for ecstasy did increase in
association with its increasing use in the 1990s, but the decline
phase for use appears to have been driven much more by changing
beliefs about the dangers of ecstasy than by any sharp downturn in
availability. Similarly, amphetamine use declined appreciably from
1981 to 1992, with only a modest corresponding change in perceived
availability. Finally, until 1995, heroin use had not risen among
12th graders even though availability had increased substantially."
Source: Johnston, L. D., O’Malley, P. M., Bachman, J. G., &
Schulenberg, J. E., Monitoring the Future national survey
results on drug use, 1975-2005: Volume I, Secondary school students
(NIH Publication No. 06-5883) (Bethesda, MD: National Institute on
Drug Abuse), August 2006, p. 407.
For more check out
Drug War Facts: Adolescents.
