Scribd
Upload
77 views1 page

Cesar: September 17, 2007 Vol. 16, Issue 37

More than 2.1 million people ages 12 or older used prescription pain relievers for the first time in 2006, continuing the trend of pain relievers surpassing all other drugs in terms of new users. While new pain reliever users have been declining since 2003, the number remains the highest. The number of new marijuana users has significantly decreased from nearly 3 million in 2000 to over 2 million in 2006. There were also increases in the number of first-time ecstasy users from 615,000 in 2005 to 860,000 in 2006 and first-time nonmedical prescription stimulant users from 647,000 to 845,000. Changes in initiation levels often indicate emerging substance use patterns.

Uploaded by

losangeles
Copyright
© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
77 views1 page

Cesar: September 17, 2007 Vol. 16, Issue 37

More than 2.1 million people ages 12 or older used prescription pain relievers for the first time in 2006, continuing the trend of pain relievers surpassing all other drugs in terms of new users. While new pain reliever users have been declining since 2003, the number remains the highest. The number of new marijuana users has significantly decreased from nearly 3 million in 2000 to over 2 million in 2006. There were also increases in the number of first-time ecstasy users from 615,000 in 2005 to 860,000 in 2006 and first-time nonmedical prescription stimulant users from 647,000 to 845,000. Changes in initiation levels often indicate emerging substance use patterns.

Uploaded by

losangeles
Copyright
© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 1

CESAR

FAX
A Weekly FAX from the Center for Substance Abuse Research
September 17, 2007
Vol. 16, Issue 37

University of Maryland, College Park

First Time Users of Pain Relievers Continue to Surpass All Other Drugs;
Number of New Ecstasy and Stimulant Users Increases
More than 2.1 million persons ages 12 or older used prescription-type pain relievers* for the first time in
2006, according to recently released data from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH).
While the number of new users of pain relievers has been decreasing since 2003, it continues to be the
drug category with the largest number of new initiates since surpassing marijuana in 2002. The number
of first-time marijuana users has declined significantly, from nearly 3.0 million in in 2000 to slightly
more than 2.0 million in 2006. Other recent changes in the initiation of illicit drugs include increases in
the number of first time ecstasy users (from 615,000 in 2005 to 860,000 in 2006) and in the number of
first-time nonmedical users of prescription-type stimulants* (from 647,000 to 845,000). Previous
research has found that changes in initiation levels “are often leading indicators of emerging patterns of
substance use” (p. 49).

Estimated Number (in thousands) of New Users of Pain Relievers, Marijuana,


Ecstasy, and Stimulants per Year, 1997-2006
(U.S. Residents Ages 12 and older)
3,000

2,500

Pain Relievers
2,000 Marijuana

Ecstasy
1,500

Stimulants
1,000

500
1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006

*Use of pain relievers and stimulants refers to the nonmedical use of prescription-type pain relievers and stimulants and does
not include over-the-counter drugs.
NOTE: Estimates from 1997 to 2001 were produced using data from the 2002-2004 NSDUH and are based on initiation
during that year. Estimates from 2002 to 2006 refer to initiation in the 12 months prior to the survey, and are
produced independently based on the data from the survey conducted that year.

SOURCE: Adapted by CESAR from Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Results from the 2006
National Survey on Drug Use and Health: National Findings, 2007. Available online at
http://www.oas.samhsa.gov/p0000016.htm#2k6.
301-405-9770 (voice) 301-403-8342 (fax) [email protected] www.cesar.umd.edu
CESAR FAX may be copied without permission. Please cite CESAR as the source.
The Governor’s Office of Crime Control and Prevention funded this project under grant BJAG 2005-1206. All points of view in
this document are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the official position of any State agency.

You might also like