Drug Abuse Remains High in Hispanic-American Youth

Recent research has shown that despite declining trends in drug use among American youth, drug use among Hispanic youth remains alarmingly high. Dr. Jorge Delva and colleagues from the Institute for Social Research at Ann Arbor, Michigan, compared trends of marijuana, cocaine, and heavy alcohol use among adolescents within the largest subgroups of the Hispanic population in the United States (Mexican-American, Puerto Rican, Cuban, and other Latin American heritage).

The research team examined data from 24,235 self-identifying Hispanic students in eighth grade from the 1991-2002 Monitoring the Future (MTF) surveys.

Although drug use trends for Hispanics were consistent among eighth-graders, drug use varied by subgroups and drug type. Past year marijuana use was 25 to 33 percent higher for boys than for girls of Mexican-American, Puerto Rican, and other Latin American (but not Cuban) ethnicities.

However, there were no gender differences among these groups in past year cocaine use and heavy drinking. Hispanic students living in households with both parents were less likely to use cocaine than Hispanic students living with no parents.

Mexican-American, Puerto Rican, and Cuban-American students in no-parent households were more likely to initiate heavy drinking than the other Latin American group, comprised mostly of youth with Central and South American heritage.

Preventive Services Needed

According to the NIDA, these findings may provide insight to potential intervention targets for Hispanic youth. In addition, prevention programs need to consider gender differences that exist among diverse Hispanic populations. Furthermore, this study suggests that preventive services are very important for youth living with relatives other than parents or in foster care.

The scientists published this paper in the April 2005 issue of the American Journal of Public Health.