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Teens and Xanax STORY BY

Melanie Hillis

En Espanol

Middle school student caught with Xanax.
Student, 13, arrested for bringing Xanax to school.
High school seniors hospitalized for Xanax overdose.

Headlines such as these highlight the abuse of the prescription anti-anxiety drug Xanax. Alprazolam, its generic name, is a cousin to Valium and other drugs in the benzodiazepine family and is gaining popularity with adolescents. Evidence of a national trend of teens turning to prescription pills to get high is mounting.

In early May, the Partnership for a Drug-Free America announced findings of a national study showing more teens had abused prescription medications in 2004 than had used Ecstasy, cocaine, crack or LSD. 

Even though prescription drug trend research is scant, Xanax appears to be a socially accepted drug of choice for abuse among youth, according to a small pilot study of Houston teens led by Ron Peters, Dr. P.H., assistant professor of behavioral sciences at The University of Texas School of Public Health at Houston.

The findings from the anecdotal research show that of the admitted users interviewed, a majority stated their friends felt it was “normal” to use Xanax and that many just rummage through family members’ medicine cabinets to score their drugs. In addition, many believe quitting would be too difficult since it is so readily accessible and socially accepted.

“When you have high social approval for maladjusted behaviors, that’s when things get off track. It’s like when you have a fight at school—all the kids are running toward it,” says Peters.

According to the interviewed users, which consisted of 67 percent male and 33 percent female teens, the tranquilizing drug is popular because of the euphoric effect and peer pressure. With Xanax, teens have reported feeling drowsy, overly-relaxed and sometimes dizzy.

Teens also reported using Xanax for self-medicating purposes and because it is inexpensive. On the streets, Xanax is about $5 for three pills. “The kids like it (Xanax) because it’s something they can actually afford, and you can pop two or three pills at a time,” says Peters. “One girl takes eight to 10 pills a day.”

Most of the males obtain Xanax from family members while the females receive the pills from drug dealers. “When asked what the barrier was to quitting, the first thing the kids said was environmental accessibility,” says Peters. “They just go ahead and ask their sisters or mothers (for Xanax).”

Peters says drug dealers don’t make a substantial amount of money selling Xanax, but continue to sell it because it’s taken along with illegal drugs.

Both genders reported taking Xanax with orange juice, alcohol or an energy drink to intensify the effects. A majority, 54 percent, of the females take Xanax with alcohol while males, 38 percent, take it with orange juice. The mix of alcohol and tranquilizers is particularly dangerous.  Respiratory suppression can result from taking the two concomitantly.

Perceived addiction

Disturbingly, both genders overwhelmingly perceive themselves as addicted from the moment they take their first dose. Ninety-seven percent of the males believed they were addicted simply because they enjoyed it and desired more.

The youth interviewed perceived themselves as unable to stop, thereby creating their own addiction before they actually had one, Peters says.

Those youth interviewed ranged from 15-18 years and were made up of 46 percent African American, 41 percent Hispanic American and 16 percent White American. Respondents were recruited from a local residential treatment facility.

In the southern United States, youths refer to alprazolam by different street names based on the color, shape of the pill and dosage. Yellow pills are called school bus or yellow boys; blue pills are footballs and white pills are bars, handlebars, white boys, white girls or bicycle parts.

While drug-prevention efforts have traditionally focused on education, parents need to learn about the dangers as well.  Most adults are unaware that their children are using the prescription drugs illicitly. “Parents need to be more diligent in safeguarding their own prescription drugs,” says Peters.

Last Updated: 3-16-2006

 

The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth), the most comprehensive academic health center in The UT System and the U.S. Gulf Coast region, is home to schools of biomedical informatics, biomedical sciences, dentistry, medicine, nursing and public health. UTHealth educates more healthcare professionals than any health-related institution in the State of Texas and features the nation’s seventh-largest medical school. It also includes a psychiatric hospital and a growing network of clinics throughout the region. The university’s primary teaching hospitals include Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center, Children’s Memorial Hermann Hospital and Lyndon B. Johnson General Hospital. Founded in 1972, UTHealth’s 10,000-plus faculty, staff, students and residents are committed to delivering innovative solutions that create the best hope for a healthier future.