BOSTON, MA — According to a new report from Harvard School of Public
Health researchers, the prevalence of recent marijuana use among U.S. college
students rose from 12.9% to 15.7% between 1993 and 1999,
an increase of 22%. Most of the increase occurred between 1993 and 1997.
While rates did not increase further in 1999, they did remain at the higher
1997 rate. Use of other illicit drugs followed the same trend, rising significantly
between 1993 and 1997, then changing little between 1997 and 1999.
The trends were drawn from lifestyle survey data collected as part of
the Harvard School of Public Health's College Alcohol Study. Henry Wechsler,
PhD, Director of the College Alcohol Study, and Jeana Gledhill-Hoyt, lead
author of the marijuana report, found that the increase was widespread,
observed at two-thirds (66%) of the 119 colleges. Between 1993 and 1999,
marijuana use had increased among most demographic groups of American college
students and at almost all types of colleges, public and private, large
and small, urban and suburban, indicating a strong national pattern.
The report was based on the responses of more than 14,000 students selected
randomly each year in 1993, 1997, and 1999 from 119 four-year colleges
in 40 states. The study was funded under a grant from the Robert Wood Johnson
Foundation and appears in the November 2000 issue of Addiction (http://www.catchword.co.uk/titles/09652140.htm).
These findings are in line with those reported elsewhere in studies
of middle school and high school students. The National Institute of Health's
Monitoring the Future Study found that there were elevated rates
of marijuana and other illicit drug use in these populations in the early
1990s. The increased college rates found in the present study may reflect
the group effect of high school drug users enrolling in college. In contrast,
drug use in the 1960s often started on college campuses and trickled
down to younger high school and junior high school populations.
According to Wechsler, "These new findings should be a source of concern
for those involved with the prevention and treatment of illicit drug use
among young people. Although rates of drug use stabilized at the end of
the decade, no significant decreases have yet been observed. Prevention
efforts aimed at illicit drug use should be stepped up and tied to those
already in place for binge drinking and cigarette use. Results of this
study demonstrate the need for drug abuse prevention programs in the secondary
schools, as well as in college to prevent experimental illicit drug users
from becoming regular users."
Authors of the study are: Jeana Gledhill-Hoyt, MPH, Hang Lee, PhD, Jared
Strote, MD and Henry Wechsler, PhD.
For further information, please contact:
Robin Herman
Office of Communications
Harvard School of Public Health
677 Huntington Avenue
Boston, MA 02115
Phone: 617-432-4752
Email: rherman@hsph.harvard.edu
Harvard School of Public Health is dedicated to advancing the public's health through learning, discovery, and communication. More than 300 faculty members are engaged in teaching and training the 800-plus student body in a broad spectrum of disciplines crucial to the health and well being of individuals and populations around the world. Programs and projects range from the molecular biology of AIDS vaccines to the epidemiology of cancer; from risk analysis to violence prevention; from maternal and children's health to quality of care measurement; from health care management to international health and human rights.
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