DRUG USE BY TEENS DROPS

Alcohol Use Declines, But New Survey Question On Ecstasy Prompts Concerns

Drug and alcohol use among California junior high and high school
students is showing signs of stabilizing or even declining, according
to a state survey released Friday.

However, among students participating in the 2001-2002 school year
survey, the party drug ``Ecstasy,'' often found at all-night dance
events called ``raves,'' was the second-most popular drug, behind only
marijuana.

``We're not alarmed by it, but we're concerned,'' said Kathryn Jett,
director of the state Department of Alcohol and Drug Programs.

The survey is given every other year to students at randomly selected
schools in the seventh, ninth and 11th grades. This was the first year
the use of Ecstasy was surveyed.

Among high school juniors, 9 percent of those surveyed said they had
taken the drug more than once in the previous six months.

Of particular concern, Jett said, was respondents' perception of the
drug. The survey asked whether students thought various drugs were
dangerous.

``In the case of Ecstasy, they do, but yet they're still using it at a
fairly high rate,'' Jett said.

Readily available

The results didn't surprise students or police familiar with the
drug's popularity.

``Anybody can get it,'' said Sgt. Greg Albin, of the San Jose Police
Department's narcotics division. He said the effect of Ecstasy ``makes
you mellow -- almost as if you're on a hallucinogen.''

Kristen Moore, a senior at Palo Alto High School, said Ecstasy is
commonly known among students as a party drug. ``They use it for fun
when they go out clubbing.''

One of her friends started to use Ecstasy regularly, Moore said, which
caused her to end the friendship.

Students have been caught coming to school dances high on the drug,
prompting a student council discussion, said Katie Griffin, a senior
class representative on the council.

Alcohol use decreases

In other categories, the survey showed some decline in the use of
alcohol, especially among seventh-graders. Thirty percent of those
students reported using alcohol in the six months before the survey.

That was a drop of five percentage points from the 1999-2000
survey.

Tobacco use also showed signs of decline, dropping in all three age
groups by two or three percentage points. The figure ranged from a
high of 19 percent for 11th-graders to a low of 4 percent for
seventh-graders.

Jett called the results ``very positive,'' especially because they
continue a downward trend that started in the previous survey.

Questions about Ecstasy were initiated in the latest survey, she said,
because of its growing popularity among young adults.

``We want to craft a campaign and preventive effort that kids will
hear,'' Jett said.

The drug can cause memory loss, and if mixed with alcohol can have
serious and even fatal results, she said.

The survey, which is conducted by Jett's agency in conjunction with
the state attorney general and education offices, does not break out
drug and alcohol use by region. Usually, usage levels locally are a
bit below statewide averages, said Linda Bonin of the Santa Clara
County Office of Education.

STUDENT DRUG USE

Percentages of California high school juniors who have used particular
drugs in the past six months, according to a survey done every two
years by the California Attorney General's Office.

Substance 1999-2000 2001-02
Beer 52.2 49.4
Wine 45.9 39.5
Liquor 49.3 50.0
Marijuana 34.7 34.0
Methamphetamine 7.1 7.5
Cocaine 6.3 6.5
Inhalants 7.2 7.0

LSD or

other psychedelics 11.5 8.2
Ecstasy N/A* 9.3
Sedatives 2.6 2.2
Tranquilizers 4.6 5.7
PCP 3.0 3.4
Heroin 2.9 2.4

* Note: Use of Ecstasy not surveyed until 2001-02 school year.

Source: California Attorney General