TEENAGE USE OF STIMULANTS LEVELS OFF IN 1998

WASHINGTON - Teenage use of alcohol, marijuana and other drugs remained
stable for a second straight year after years on the rise, with younger
teenagers even less likely to have used drugs over the past year, according
to a government report being released today.

The annual report offers a comprehensive look at drug, alcohol and cigarette
use among 8th-, 10th- and 12th-graders. With a few exceptions, it paints an
optimistic picture of American teenagers, according to a summary of the
findings.

The Monitoring the Future survey, conducted by the University of Michigan's
Institute for Social Research, has tracked teenage drug use since 1975.
Based on nearly 50,000 responses to questions about drug use and attitudes,
it offers the first look at adolescent drug use in 1998.

The findings were being released today by Donna Shalala, secretary of the
Health and Human Services Department, and Barry McCaffrey, director of the
Office of National Drug Control Policy.

Last year's report found drug use stabilizing for the first time after
several years on the rise. It also found more adolescents disapproving of
drug use.

This year, the survey finds a drop in the number of 8th- and 10th-graders
reporting the use of any type of illegal drug. Use among high-school seniors
was steady.

Overall, 35 percent of 10th-graders said they had used drugs during the past
year, down from 38.5 percent in 1997. Use among 8th-graders in the past year
dropped to 21 percent from 23.6 percent.

Use of marijuana, by far the most popular drug, dropped among 10th-graders.

But there was an increase in the number of 8th-graders who had tried crack
or cocaine, with 3.2 percent saying they had tried it at some point and 2.1
percent using it in the past year. Also, fewer 8th-graders said they
disapproved of people taking LSD or saw great risk in LSD use.

Checked-by: Don Beck