BUTTS OUT 'N' BOOZE IN

Ontario students are high on binge boozing and popping Ecstasy but smoking
fewer cigarettes, according to the longest ongoing study of teen drug use
in Canada.

Dr. Edward Adlaf, lead author of the 2001 Ontario Student Drug Use Survey,
said some habits are declining but the number of teens using drugs is still
high.

"The good news is that illicit drug use among youth isn't growing; the bad
news is it's still higher than it was in the early '90s," said Adlaf,
research scientist at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health.

ECSTASY UP

Alcohol is still the most highly used drug -- 65% of teens reported
drinking in the past year.

Another area of concern is the dramatic increase in Ecstasy use. From 1999
to 2001, use of the popular rave drug jumped from 2.3% to 7.2% among Grade
9s but there was no marked increase among other grades.

LUNG CANCER

Roberta Ferrence of the Ontario Tobacco Research Unit said tobacco use is
declining due to high cigarette prices and restrictions on smoking in
public places but there is a steady increase in marijuana use.

"For the first time, we have more kids starting to use pot than starting to
use tobacco. We will end up having the same epidemic of lung cancer and
heart disease caused by smoking," she said.

Use of alcohol by Toronto students is lower than average while western
Ontario students report above-average use of drugs like marijuana, heroin,
crack and cocaine. Northern students have a higher rate of alcohol and
binge drinking than anywhere in Ontario.