HEROIN USE GOING UP AMONG US TEEN-AGERS

Heroin use has risen rapidly in recent years among U.S. teens, with many
middle-class youngsters snorting the drug in the mistaken belief that it's
less addictive than shooting up, experts say.

The proportion of American 12th-graders who had used heroin doubled between
1990 and 1996, from 0.9 percent to 1.8 percent, according to a study in the
December issue of the journal Pediatrics.

And the rate edged up again last year, to 2.1 percent, with some states
reporting even higher percentages, said the study's author, Dr. Richard H.
Schwartz of the Inova Hospital for Children in Falls Church, Va. He cited
data from the federal government and other sources.

The highly addictive nature of heroin and the devastating consequences of
getting hooked make the trend troubling, he said.

From Register news services

Checked-by: Mike Gogulski