SURVEY OF TEENS`ALARMING'

Health chief:Parents should talk to kids about drugs, drinking and
sex.

Even in affluent and educated Santa Clara County, a worrisome number
of youngsters are experimenting with smoking, drinking and sex -- and
have contemplated suicide -- according to the first comprehensive
survey of teens by the Santa Clara County Department of Public Health.

``It is alarming, because these behaviors are all preventable,'' said
Dr. Martin D. Fenstersheib, the county's health officer. ``They are
things that kids are choosing to do: high-risk behaviors that lead to
injury and illness.''

The survey of 7,000 Santa Clara County students in seventh through
12th grade, conducted in partnership with the State Department of
Education and released Monday, is a major new benchmark of adolescent
behavior and will be used to help decide how to encourage healthy behavior.

It suggests that parents should pay closer attention to their
children's behavior and the friends they spend time with, offer useful
advice, serve as good role models and be clear but realistic about
family expectations for academic achievement.

As with most health problems, the best way to deal with high-risk
behaviors is to prevent them from occurring in the first place,
Fenstersheib said.

``Parents here are busy; everyone is working . . . but parents are the
biggest influence in their kids' lives. They need to teach their kids
how to say no,'' said Fenstersheib. ``They can't expect the schools to
do it.''

The survey of high school students, initiated in 1997, found
that:

56.7 percent had tried cigarette smoking. About one-fourth of high
school students had smoked in the past month.

65.5 percent had had at least one drink of alcohol during their
lifetime. More than one-third of high school students had had a drink
in the past month and about one-quarter had gone on a binge in the
past month, defined as having five or more drinks on one occasion.

38.8 percent had tried smoking marijuana. One-quarter of students said
they had smoked in the past month.

9.5 percent had tried smoking, snorting or free-basing
cocaine.

31 percent had had sexual intercourse; of these, one-quarter had four
or more partners. Of those who had sex, one-third said they used no
birth control. By 12th grade, nearly half had had sexual
intercourse.

22.3 percent reported thinking seriously about attempting suicide
within the past year. About 18 percent said they had actually planned
their suicide.

Also worrisome were signs of early risk-taking behaviors among middle
school children. The survey found that 33 percent had tried cigarette
smoking; 51.5 percent had tried drinking alcohol; 14 percent had used
marijuana during their lifetime; 9.6 percent had had sexual
intercourse, and 3.6 percent had tried cocaine.

The findings also suggest that more students are engaging in sex,
smoking, drinking and cocaine use at a younger age. A higher
proportion of middle school students than high school students
reported engaging in sexual intercourse and the use of tobacco,
alcohol and cocaine before the age of 13.

The report notes that Santa Clara County teens do somewhat better than
their peers elsewhere in the state and country in these high-risk behaviors.

For example, 39 percent of county teens have smoked pot, compared with
46 percent of California teens and 47 percent of U.S. teens. The 65
percent prevalence of alcohol experimentation in Santa Clara County is
significantly lower than that reported by California youth (76
percent) and U.S. youth (79 percent).

The survey, designed by the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention, queried the students about their involvement in behaviors
that underlie the leading causes of death, injury, illness and social
problems among youth. Identical surveys are being conducted in other
counties across the United States.

Fourteen high schools and 12 middle schools in the county were
selected to provide a representative sample of students.

Of the 7,000 students surveyed, about 5,000 were included in the final
data analysis.

Although the report found that children here are relatively healthy,
it identified significant disparities based on race and gender.

In general, Latino teens were the most likely to have experimented
with tobacco smoking, alcohol use, cocaine use and marijuana smoking
than those of other racial and ethnic groups. Asian/Pacific Islander
teens were the least likely.

Across almost every measure, boys were more likely than girls to
report involvement in these risky behaviors.

The survey also revealed other forms of substance abuse. It found that
2.7 percent of high school students had used steroids without a
doctor's prescription; 1.6 percent had injected drugs; 15.7 percent
had tried illegal drugs, such as LSD, PCP, ``ecstasy,'' psychotropic
mushrooms, speed, or heroin; and 14.7 percent had sniffed glue or
breathed the contents of aerosol spray cans.

Parents can set a good example by using alcohol only in moderation,
preferably with meals, and never suggesting it as a solution to stress
or other emotional problems, said the health department experts. They
can describe to teens how quickly a person can become hooked on
nicotine and how hard it can be to break the addiction.

Parents also can teach kids how to rise above the influence of peers
and advertising -- and think for themselves, they said. They can also
help foster a healthy self-image, so that kids can resist outside influences.

``This report is a valuable tool for health officials, educators and
others about the welfare of our children,'' said Dr. Guadalupe S.
Olivas, director of the Public Health Department.

``It provides baseline information that will help us target resources
where they are most needed,'' she said.