TEEN DRUG USE SAME FOR 4TH YEAR

WASHINGTON Illicit drug use among teen-agers held steady in 2000 for the
fourth straight year, and cigarette smoking declined significantly, the
government reported Thursday.

The annual Monitoring the Future survey, a benchmark for teen drug, alcohol
and tobacco use, had mostly good news, with drops among eighth-, 10th- and
12th-graders. But it also found use of the drug ecstasy, a favorite at
dance clubs, increasing for the second year running. And the number of high
school seniors using heroin hit its highest point since the survey began in
1975.

The survey of 45,000 students in 435 randomly chosen schools nationwide
found that use of cocaine and hallucinogens such as LSD dropped, with
marijuana use unchanged from 1999.

The results were released Thursday by Health and Human Services Secretary
Donna Shalala and Barry McCaffrey, White House drug policy director.

Despite success in holding back increases, Shalala said, "we must remain
vigilant to new threats, particularly that of so-called club drugs such as
ecstasy." She said parents and teachers must realize they are the "first
and best" influence against drug use by children.

After increasing through the mid-1990s, teen drug use leveled off and in
some cases, dropped in 1996. This year, usage was steady no matter how it
was measured in the last month, year or ever.