UNDERAGE DRINKING INCREASES IN STATE

A Federal Study Finds That Wisconsin Bucks the National Trend.

Underage drinking nationwide was nearly unchanged from 2002 to 2004,
but increased in Wisconsin and California, according to a study
released Thursday.

The report by the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services
Administration, based on interviews of 135,500 people, is the first to
document state-by-state drug and alcohol use from 2002 to 2004.

It found that teen alcohol use remained basically unchanged -- from
17.67 percent in 2002 to 17.65 percent in 2004.

But in Wisconsin, 38.3 percent of youths age 12 to 20 were drinkers in
2004 compared to 34.7 percent in 2002. In California, the number rose
from 24.7 percent to 26.3 percent.

The report said that in 2004, 10.9 percent of young people age 12 to
17 reported that they had used an illegal drug in the past month, a
drop from 11.4 percent in 2002.

Fueling the decline were six states -- Illinois, Nebraska, North
Carolina, South Dakota, Vermont and Virginia -- while use in other
states was largely flat.

"While we are making progress on drug and alcohol use among youth,
underage drinking continues as a stubbornly persistent problem," said
Charles Curie, administrator of SAMHSA. "It's time to change attitudes
toward teen drinking from acceptance to abstinence."

"It begins by recognizing the importance of parents talking to their
children early and often about alcohol, especially before they've
started drinking," he said.

The report showed wide disparities from state to state when it came to
tobacco use as well as abuse of alcohol and drugs, including cocaine,
marijuana and the nonmedical use of pain relievers.

Alaska and New Mexico topped the list among those ages 12 and older
who reported using an illegal drug in the past month, at 11.8 percent
and 11.3 percent, respectively, compared to a national average of 8.1
percent. The most drug-free were Mississippi at 5.8 percent and Iowa
at 6.5 percent.

Among teens, tobacco-producing state Kentucky as well as South Dakota
had the most tobacco use at 24.3 percent and 21.3 percent,
respectively, compared to a national average of 14.4 percent. The
lowest were Utah at 8.7 percent and the District of Columbia at 9 percent.

Other findings:

West Virginia had the highest rate of self-reported "serious
psychological distress" among adults age 18 and older in the past year
(12.7 percent), while Hawaii had the lowest (7.1 percent). The study
did not track distress among youth.

Eight states ranked in the top fifth for underage use of alcohol as
well as underage binge use: Iowa, Massachusetts, Montana, New
Hampshire, North Dakota, Rhode Island, South Dakota and Wisconsin.

Douglas Wright of SAMHSA, who authored the study, said the results
show that states need to review their individual findings carefully so
they can tailor anti-drug and alcohol efforts accordingly. In general,
colder, more rural states in the north may need to be particularly
vigilant, he said.

"States tend to have drinking and other problems as you go further
north, where a large portion of the year you are removed from a lot of
other people," Wright said.

The report can be found at www.oas.samhsa.gov/2k4State/toc.htm.