NCJ Number
211517
Date Published
September 2005
Length
310 pages
Annotation
This report presents comprehensive statistical information from the 2004 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) on the use of illicit drugs, alcohol, and tobacco by non-institutionalized citizens of the United States with national estimates on the rates of use and numbers of users.
Abstract
Since 1971, the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), previously called the National Household Survey on Drug Abuse (NHSDA) has been the primary source of statistical information on the use of illegal drugs by the United States population. NSDUH collects information from residents of households, non-institutional group quarters, and civilians living on military bases. The survey interviews approximately 67,500 persons each year aged 12 years and older. This 2004 report presents data on national estimates of rates of use, numbers of users, and other measures related to illicit drugs, alcohol, and tobacco products. Measures related to mental health problems are also presented, including data on the co-occurrence of substance use and mental health problems and new data on depression among youths and adults. Highlights of the survey results include: (1) 19.1 million Americans or 7.9 percent of the population were current illicit drug users in 2004; (2) 121 million Americans or 50.3 percent were current drinkers of alcohol in 2004; (3) 70.3 million Americans or 29.2 percent were current users of a tobacco product; (4) the illicit drug category with the largest number of new users was non-medical pain relievers; (5) the percentage of youths aged 12 to 17 indicating that smoking marijuana once a month was a great risk increased from 32.4 percent in 2002 to 34.9 in 2003, with no change between 2003 and 2004; (6) 22.5 million Americans or 9.4 percent of the population were classified with past year substance dependence or abuse; and (7) there were 35.1 million or 14.7 percent persons who had at least one major depressive episode in their lifetime. Table, figures and appendixes A-H