Non-Medical Prescription Drugs

I Article Documentation

Jason A. Ford, PhD, 2008, Non-medical Prescription Drug Use Among College Students: A Comparison Between Athletes and Non-athletes, Heldref Publications, 211-217.

II Article Summary

The article is about the drug use among college students, and comparison between the athletes and non-athletes. We see from Dr. Ford, “research indicates that college athletes engage in a wide range of risky behaviors. And, findings indicate that college athletes are at greater risk for alcohol use then are non-athletes: Athletes report more extreme styles of alcohol consumption, binge drinking at higher rates, and get drunk more often.” Meaning, that more of the athletes are using alcohol and illicit drugs than the non-athletes.
But, the most alarming increase in the non-medical stated was, “Between 1992 and 2003, the number of people in the general US population who reported non-medical prescription drug use increased by 94%, with an increase of 212% for adolescents aged 12 to 17 years.” The troubling fact is that the majority of college students who report the behavior begin using prior to college. And also, Dr Ford writes, “Research also indicates that use has greatly increased among college.” Dr. Ford interviewed Selby et al and found that, “Athletes have high levels of marijuana use, but they did not include comparison group of non-athletic in their analysis.” Also, by analyzing data from a nationally representative sample of college students, Dr. Ford interviewed with Wechsler et al and found that, “athletes use marijuana at lower levels than do non-athletes.” Also, with that Wechsler et al concluded that, “athletes involved in team sports have higher rates of substance use than do those involved in non-team sports. It also appears that rates of binge drinking increases involvement in athletics increases.” For example, team leaders report higher levels than team
With the vast majority of colleges growing we see more alcohol abusers and drug addicts. The percentages are only going up with the ways of the college athletes are binge drinking at parties, with males and females. The school administratiors must be informed of the potential health risks of prescription drug misuse. It is clear that non-medical prescription drug use should be included in substance use prevention and treatment programs offered to college students. Second, findings suggest that participation in athletics, especially for women, works as a protective factor for non-medical prescrption drug use. Future researchers must examine what groups of college students are at increased risk for non-medical prescription drug use. Third, findings indicate that binge drinking and the use of other illicit drugs are strong predictors of non-medical prescription drug use. College students need to be make aware of the possible negative consequences as a result of drug