NCJ Number
198151
Date Published
August 2002
Length
96 pages
Annotation
This first volume of a three-volume report summarizes the national findings of the 2001 National Household Survey on Drug Abuse (NHSDA), which obtained information on the prevalence of substance use in the U.S. population, as well as the problems associated with such use.
Abstract
Specifically, the survey collected information on the sociodemographic characteristics of users, patterns of use, treatment, perceptions of risk, criminal behavior, and mental health. Since 1999 the NHSDA sample has been designed to provide State-level estimates based on 70,000 respondents (12 years old and older) per year. The survey found that an estimated 15.9 million Americans ages 12 and older (7.1 percent of the population) used an illicit drug during the month immediately prior to the survey interviews ("current users"). The 2000 survey reported that 6.3 percent of this population were current users of illicit drugs. The survey found statistically significant increases between 2000 and 2001 in the use of specific drugs or groups of illicit drugs, such as marijuana (from 4.8 to 5.4 percent) and cocaine (0.5 to 0.7 percent), and the nonmedical use of pain relievers (1.2 to 1.6 percent) and tranquilizers (0.4 to 0.6 percent). The 2001 survey found that 10.8 percent of youths 12-17 were current drug users compared with 9.7 percent in 2000. Similarly, among adults ages 18 to 25, current drug use increased between 2000 and 2001 from 15.9 to 18.8 percent. There were no statistically significant changes in the rates of drug use among adults aged 26 or older. Patterns of current drug use among major racial/ethnic groups in 2001 were similar to previous years: 7.4 percent among blacks, 7.2 percent among whites, and 6.4 percent among Hispanics. Current drug use was highest among American Indians and Alaska Natives (9.9 percent) and lowest among Asians (2.8 percent). Findings are reported for alcohol use, tobacco use, trends in the initiation of substance use, prevention-related measures, substance dependence or abuse, treatment for substance abuse problems, serious mental illness among adults, and mental health treatment. 54 figures