Monitoring the Future University of Michigan\u2019s annual drug abuse survey, Monitoring the Future, were released today showing that the percentage of teens using over-the-counter (OTC) cough medicine containing dextromethorphan (DXM) to get high remains at just 3 percent, the lowest level recorded for teen cough medicine abuse since 2015. When first reported in 2006, teen abuse of these OTC cough medicines was nearly 6 percent, but has declined significantly since then. <\/p>\n
Since 2006, the rate of teen OTC cough medicine abuse has decreased by 44% (from 5.4% to 3%). <\/p>\n
Over the past decade, the Consumer Healthcare Products Association (CHPA) has worked to help reduce teen DXM abuse by employing three strategies: increasing parent engagement in abuse awareness and prevention; heightening teen perceptions of the risks and social disapproval of medicine abuse; and limiting teen access to DXM through age-18 sales restrictions in states. In 2008, CHPA member companies voluntarily placed a \u201cPARENTS: Learn About Teen Medicine Abuse\u201d icon on the packaging of cough medicines containing DXM. The icon serves as a mini public service announcement for parents, making them aware of cough medicine abuse at the point-of-sale and point-of-use and directing them to StopMedicineAbuse.org \u2013 a well-established website and abuse prevention campaign aimed at engaging parents and community leaders about teen abuse of OTC cough medicine. <\/p>\n
\u201cPublic policy and education are both vitally important to combating teen OTC cough medicine abuse,\u201d said CHPA president and CEO Scott Melville. \u201cThis is why CHPA has long supported state efforts to limit teen access to DXM and has worked to increase parental awareness through our Stop Medicine Abuse education campaign, while at the same time, ensuring continued access for millions of families who responsibly use medicines containing DXM.\u201d CHPA also collaborates with the Partnership for Drug-Free Kids to target teens who are most likely to abuse DXM based on their online search activity and to provide them with accurate information about the consequences of abusive behavior. Teens are directed to visit WhatIsDXM.com to learn more. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe Partnership for Drug-Free Kids welcomes the data from this year\u2019s Monitoring the Future Survey showing no year-to-year increases in high school students\u2019 misuse of over-the-counter cough and cold remedies,\u201d said Partnership president and CEO Fred Muench. \u201cFor nearly a decade now, the Partnership and CHPA have collaborated on a digital media prevention effort targeting this behavior \u2013 and we have seen steady and significant declines over this period in teens\u2019 misuse of OTC cough medicine to get high. It\u2019s compelling evidence that smart, strategic prevention initiatives can work, and can deliver real benefits to teens and their families.\u201d <\/p>\n
Additionally recognizing that retailers play a critical role in abuse prevention, this year CHPA launched a new Pharmacists & Retailers page on the StopMedicineAbuse.org site, where retailers can download or order free materials. Please visit StopMedicineAbuse.org for more information about teen DXM abuse, the retailer education materials, and other helpful resources for parents and community leaders. <\/p>\n
The Consumer Healthcare Products Association (CHPA) is the 136-year-old national trade association representing the leading manufacturers and marketers of over-the-counter (OTC) medicines and dietary supplements. Every dollar spent by consumers on OTC medicines saves the U.S. healthcare system $6-$7, contributing a total of $102 billion in savings each year. CHPA is committed to empowering consumer self-care by preserving and expanding choice and availability of consumer healthcare products. chpa.org <\/p>\n
Source: https:\/\/www.businesswire.com\/news\/home\/20171214006254\/en\/New-Results-Annual-Survey <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Monitoring the Future University of Michigan\u2019s annual drug abuse survey, Monitoring the Future, were released today showing that the percentage of teens using over-the-counter (OTC) cough medicine containing dextromethorphan (DXM) to get high remains at just 3 percent, the lowest level recorded for teen cough medicine abuse since 2015. When first reported in 2006, teen […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[41,86,61],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14180","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-drug-use-effects-on-foetus","category-prescription-drugs","category-youth"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14180","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14180"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14180\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14180"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14180"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14180"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}