Drugs and alcohol make people do crazy things and behave in ways they otherwise wouldn’t. They become careless, reckless or clumsy. They lose interest in the things they would normally care about (such as caring for children) and experience a distortion in priorities. They can become agitated and violent or even suffer a break with reality. Because of this, drug and alcohol use poses a significant threat to our children and communities.
In fact, substance abuse ranks among the top in terms of leading causes of death and accidental injury to kids. Very few people appreciate the extent of this, as evidenced by the often-used misnomer, “non-violent drug user,” as if substance abuse were entirely innocuous so long as the user isn’t attacking people with axes. In truth, the average, garden-variety substance abuser is, statistically speaking, tens of thousands of times more dangerous than the sex offenders most parents obsess about, whether this danger comes from driving while intoxicated, acting in reckless and irresponsible ways, leaving drugs lying around where children can get into them and accidentally overdose, or harming kids directly as a result of drug-fueled paranoia. Substance abuse by parents or family members also harms children every bit as much as abusing them directly.
The pages linked below document some of the various risks to children posed by drug and alcohol use.
- Child Opioid Overdoses
- Children Killed by Drunk Drivers
- Drugs, Alcohol, & Child Abuse & Neglect
- Kids Killed or Endangered By Drug Users
- Methamphetamine Overdoses & Deaths Involving Children
See also…
- Information on drugs & alcohol
- Statistics on child & teenage drug abuse
- Signs & symptoms on drug and alcohol use in children and teens
- When kids start using drugs and alcohol
- Talking to kids about drugs and alcohol
- Drug prevention education