sorders, between 41 percent and 65 percent also have a mental health disorder. In 90 percent of cases, the mental disorder develops before the substance abuse disorder. Adolescents with ADHD and learning disorders in combination with depression and anxiety disorders are at high risk for having a substance abuse problem. It is believed that long term substance abuse causes profound changes in brain structure and function, and that people who abuse alcohol have different brain chemistries that predispose them to drinking.
Rates and patterns of drug abuse show substantial variations with age (USDHHS, 2002). In the U.S., the average first use of mood-altering chemicals is 11.9 years for boys and 12.7 years for girls, usually under peer pressure (Teen, 2040). Children usually model the chemical use of their parents. In 2001, among youths aged 12 and 13, 3.8 percent reported current use of illicit drugs (USDHHS, 2002). Among youths aged 12 to 17, the rate of use of illicit drugs was 10.8 percent in 2001, up from 9.7 percent in 2000. The rate of use of illicit drugs in the past month among youths aged 12 and 13 in 2001 was 3.8 percent, up from 3.0 percent in 2000, but was unchanged in youths aged 14 and 15. The rate of current illicit drug use among youths aged 16 or 17 did not change between 2000 and 2001, but the
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