ADDICTION REASONS DIFFER BY SEX

WASHINGTON - Girls and young women get hooked on cigarettes, alcohol and
drugs more quickly and for different reasons than boys, and should receive
specialized treatment reflecting that, according to a study released
Wednesday. Teenage girls often begin smoking and drinking to relieve stress
or alleviate depression, while boys do it for thrills or heightened social
status, according to the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse
at Columbia University. Girls "get hooked faster, they get hooked using
lesser amounts of alcohol and drugs and cocaine, and they suffer the
consequences faster and more severely," said Joseph Califano, chairman of
the center.

Califano said prevention and treatment centers need to design their
programs to deal with the risk factors leading to female substance abuse.

"With some exceptions, the substance abuse prevention programs have really
been designed with a unisex, one-size-fits-both-sexes mentality," said
Califano, who served as health and human services secretary under President
Carter. "We now know that girls are different than boys. Let's recognize it
and let's help them."

Florida first lady Columba Bush, whose daughter Noelle is struggling with
substance abuse, said that if parents and educators understand girls are
more vulnerable and need different treatments, "we can save millions of
young girls and women from the agony of addiction."

Mrs. Bush is married to Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, who's President Bush's brother.

The study, based on a nationwide survey of more than 1,200 females aged 8
to 22, found about 45 percent of high school girls drink alcohol, compared
with 49 percent of boys, and girls outpace boys in the use of prescription
drugs, the study found.

Researchers determined girls also are more likely to abuse substances if
they reached puberty early, had eating disorders or were ever physically or
sexually abused.

Their likelihood of using cigarettes, alcohol or drugs also increases if
their families move often or when girls advance from middle school to high
school or from high school to college.

As they reach puberty and develop into teenagers, "girls are likelier than
boys to compare themselves physically and academically to their new peers,
increasing the doubts they feel about themselves," the study said.

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., said she would introduce legislation
aimed at boosting public awareness of prescription drug abuse and forcing
hospitals to better track the problem.