Youth Survey shows typical alcohol, drug use by county teens

Calhoun County students were more likely to have tried alcohol than students statewide, the latest Iowa Youth Survey says.
In Calhoun County, 63 percent of the sixth-, eighth- and 11th grade students who responded to the survey last spring said they had never tried alcohol, compared with 71 percent of students surveyed statewide.
But overall, the survey shows, the number of teens using alcohol, tobacco and illegal drugs is on par with state averages. That’s consistent with the experience of law enforcement officers in the county. In fact, three law enforcement leaders said, they’re seeing fewer of the big parties they used to break up, though the use of marijuana and abuse of prescription drugs seems to be increasing. 
Read more in the Aug. 16 edition.