CHILDREN DON'T SEE CANNABIS AS DANGEROUS, SURVEY FINDS

Children as young as 12 are smoking cannabis, at 15 some have moved on to heroin and by 17 they're hooked and already seeking detoxification, a report today shows.

But another distinct group of drug takers in inner-city Dublin emerged as occasional users who take ecstasy at weekends when they're socialising but do not become addicts.

This undermined the "slippery slope" theory that occasional drug use led to addiction, according to the Choosers Or Losers? report by the Children's Research Centre at Trinity College Dublin.

Three distinct groups were pinpointed problem drug takers, occasional drug users and abstainers and cannabis use was so casual as to be shrugged off.

"It's not viewed as a dangerous activity, even abstainers say it's just like smoking a cigarette," researcher Paula Maycock said yesterday.

She added: "Choice is a factor. Young people are aware of certain risks associated with drug use and they assess the risks and the benefits. They distinguish between harms in different substances and use strategies to ensure no great harm arises.

"The benefits are that drug taking is pleasant, there's a buzz, it aids social interaction. Curiosity is one of the main motivating factors for initial and subsequent drug use. And boredom is another big one - it alleviates boredom and depression."

Young people, aged 17 to 19, were interviewed over six months in an inner-city Dublin community. Fifty-seven teenagers participated and of those who took drugs, many pooled their babysitting and pocket money to pay for them.

Those most likely to be heroin users left school at 13, were in casual employment and came from heavily disadvantaged backgrounds.

The centre's new director, Robbie Gilligan, said many existing services were aimed at an older age group and teenagers thought they were "for wrinklies". He said the study was the first Irish one "trying to understand drug use from the perspective of young people".