By: Mia Huerta, Staff Reporter
As a society, it’s widely understood that drugs are bad, but most teens and adults today still take them.
The website Statista states that ”In 2021, the estimated number of illegal drug users worldwide was around 296 million.”
Nationally, this is no different. According to the National Center for Drug Abuse, 62 percent of teens who are still in high school use some kind of harmful narcotics in their day-to-day lives. 30.7 percent of 12th graders reported cannabis use in the past year, 31.3 percent of 10th graders reported Alcohol use in the past year, and 20.5% eighth graders reported vaping nicotine in the past year.
Some students at Guyer High School are also included in this. But most don’t realize what those same narcotics do to their bodies. Vapes, although first advertised as a better alternative to smoking, still pose health risks, such as inflammation and irritation in your lungs. This can lead to lung damage like scarring and narrowing of the tubes that bring air in and out of your lungs.
Alcohol and vapes have become a widespread epidemic in all schools across America. In response, some teens at Guyer are now calling for a mandatory drug education class to help inform incoming freshmen about the substances they may encounter and some of the very real consequences of using them.
”Educating students early on, before they are put in a situation where they are pressured into using them would be beneficial,” freshman Evelyn Huynh said.
Because most teens already don’t enjoy the idea of school, some teens think that if the class were engaging and honest about the very real and sad struggles/withdrawals that come with using narcotics, and “not just another lecture about drugs,” Huynh said.
Most would appreciate the class. There’s no permanent solution to fighting the drug use of teens, but there is always something you can do to prevent them from starting. That’s why some teens at Guyer High School think a Mandatory drug class would be a great addition to the school.
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