You can influence your teen’s decisions about drugs.

Know Where Your Child Is. Children without adult supervision are at a significantly greater risk of truancy from school, stress, receiving poor grades, risk taking behavior and substance abuse.

• Get Your Teen Involved in After-School Activities. Use of alcohol and drugs is significantly less among those who participate in adult-supervised activities.
• Know Your Teens’ Friends. Research from the Partnership for a Drug-Free America say that half of teens say they have friends that do drugs. Parents should personally know about their teen’s friends.
• Know The Dangers of Drugs. Learn the effects of drugs that teens may be exposed to. To find out the effects of drugs go to www.drugfreeamerica.org.
• Talk with your teen. Kids who say they learn a lot about the risks of drugs at home are approximately 50 percent less likely to use drugs.

SIGNS YOUR TEEN IS USING DRUGS—

• Change in friends
• Change in sleeping patterns
• Declining grades
• Loss of interest in hobbies or favorite activities
• Lack of motivation
• Hostile and uncooperative attitude
• Unexplained disappearance of household money

If you suspect that your child is at risk, act immediately. For more information go to www.drugfreeamerica.org.