New Resources Help Families Address Drug and Alcohol Use Among Teens

Lawndale News Chicago's Bilingual Newspaper - HealthThe Partnership at Drugfree.org announced the launch of new tools for Hispanic parents and families, accessible at “HablaConTusHijos,” a free, bilingual (Spanish/English) online resource to help Hispanic parents who are struggling to address drug and alcohol abuse by their children. Recognizing the urgent need within the Latino community for these kinds of comprehensive tools, The Partnership at Drugfree.org created “HablaConTusHijos” to provide effective, yet easy-to-use, resources equipping Hispanic parents and grandparents to take action in preventing teen substance abuse. This new web resource was made possible with major support from MetLife Foundation.

New research from the latest Partnership Attitude Tracking Study (PATS), a nationally projectable study that tracks drug and alcohol use among youth, shows that Hispanic teens are using drugs at alarmingly higher levels when compared to teens from other ethnic groups. According to the most current PATS research data:

  • When compared to other ethnic groups, more than half of Hispanic teens (54 percent) reported having used an illicit drug in the past year, versus 42 percent of African-American teens and 39 percent for Caucasian teens
  • Also, 23 percent of Hispanic teens report having ever abused a prescription medicine at least once, compared to 16 percent for Caucasian teens and 11 percent for African-American teens

The Parents Toll-Free Helpline, 1-855-378-4373, is staffed by social workers with practical experience in substance abuse intervention and treatment. The Parents Toll-Free Helpline is not a 24-hour crisis hotline and is staffed Monday-Friday from 10:00 am-6:00 pm EST. For more information in Spanish visit “HablaConTusHijos” or The Parent Tool Kit in English.

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