DRUG USE ON RISE IN QUEBEC YOUTH

A study that shows drug and alcohol consumption among Quebec youth is on
the rise only confirms what the director of an Outaouais addiction centre
already knew.

Marie-Claude LeBlanc estimated that 40% of the clients at the Outaouais
intervention and prevention centre for addiction are younger than 30.

"We see more and more people seeking help at younger ages and for much more
severe problems," she said.

LeBlanc attributed the problem, which she said has increased in the last
few years, to poverty.

The average age for prostitution, homelessness and mental illness has also
decreased.

"When we saw derelicts with no fixed address, usually the median age was
35-40, and it was mostly men," she said. "Now we see many young people with
no fixed address that are 18-19 years, even 17."

Pot

The new report, published by the Quebec statistics institute and the
provincial Health Department, found 6% of high school students will likely
graduate with a substance-abuse problem serious enough to warrant treatment.

Nearly half of all students surveyed said they smoked marijuana and about
20% indicated weekly use.

The study of drugs, alcohol and gambling in schools also found that nine
out of 10 students will likely try alcohol before graduation with half
becoming social drinkers and about 20% having gone binge-drinking at least
five times.

Quebec youth are also more likely to dabble in drugs than their peers in
Ontario and the U.S.

Gambling, however, is less of a problem for young Quebecers.

Of the 4,730 students surveyed, 63% said they gamble occasionally and only
3.5% of students in Quebec are considered at risk of developing a gambling
problem.

Health officials admit the figures are cause for alarm.

Raves

"At the same time, the proportion of children who don't have any type of
problem remains very high," said Lucie Leduc, a Health Department official.
"But we are preoccupied by what seems to be more precocious consumption by
young people."

Despite the fact that the rave culture has prompted hard-drug use among
some teens and pot use has become commonplace in many circles because of
widespread talk of its legalization, LeBlanc still worries more about youth
from lower socioeconomic classes.

"There may be consumption in all social classes, but when it comes to
developing an addiction, it's more concentrated in lower-income
individuals," she said.

In some poorer communities, for instance, LeBlanc has seen children as
young as 10 admit to having smoked pot.