Prevention specialist: Youth have changing perception of medications

Iowa’s youth are showing a shift in attitude about prescription medications, Community and Family Resources prevention specialist Corey Dewey told the Calhoun County Board of Supervisor Sept. 4.
“Underage drinking numbers are kind of decreasing as marijuana and medication (abuse) numbers go way up,” Dewey said.
She said she hears a few related explanations for those shifts. One, she said, marijuana has been legalized in some states, which can lead youth to believe it isn’t a dangerous substance. Two, Americans have a culture of taking pills to address problems – pills for pain, pills for weight loss – so teens see taking medication as an acceptable thing to do. Access to medications is also an issue, Dewey said.
Read more in the Sept. 12 edition.