Family Members

Parents or caregivers are the most influential members of a child’s life. The actions you take on the use of over-the-counter and prescription drugs in your home serve as an example to your child. Any expectations that your child develops in relation to drug use behaviors are influenced by the norms you establish and the communication you have with your child.

Parents and teens need to understand that when over-the-counter and prescribed medications are used to get high, they are every bit as dangerous as "street drugs." And when prescribed drugs are used by or distributed to individuals without prescriptions, they are every bit as illegal.

Examine your own behavior to ensure you set a good example. If you misuse your prescription drugs, such as by sharing them with your kids, your teen will notice. Always follow your medical provider’s instructions and never share your prescription medications. Use over-the-counter medication for its intended purpose, and follow the labeled directions.

Parents can feel confident that the power of peer pressure and the Internet can be overcome with effective parenting. That process begins by seeking information about the reasons why teens engage in non-medical drug use. It ends by confidently communicating with your child about the hazards of prescription and over-the-counter drug abuse. Studies show that children, whose parents play an active role in their lives, talk openly with them, attend school events, and listen to their problems, are less likely to use harmful substances.

Know why young people abuse and misuse prescription drugs and over-the-counter medications

For a variety of reasons, many teens mistakenly believe that prescription drugs are safer than street drugs*:

• These are medicines;
• They can be obtained from doctors, pharmacies, friends or family members;
• It’s not necessary to buy them from traditional "drug dealers"; and
• Information on the effects of these drugs is widely available in package inserts, advertisements and on the internet.

* Street drugs refer to drugs that are commonly known as illegal drugs-cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, marijuana, and others.

Safely store and dispose of your prescription drugs and over-the-counter medications

A 2006 study found that more than three in five teens say prescription pain relievers are easy to get from parents’ medicine cabinets, and over 50 percent of teens say pain relievers are "available everywhere." Think about your home. What prescription and over-the-counter drugs do you have? Where are they kept? Would you know if some were missing?

Safe Storage.

Parents and others using prescription medications must prevent drugs from getting into the hands of children by locking their medicine cabinets. Safe storage options include medicine cabinets designed with a lock, lockboxes that can be screwed into the medicine cabinet, and small standalone safes or lockboxes.

Monitor medications.

Keep track of the supply of prescription drugs and over-the-counter medications in your home.

• Take a regular inventory of pills and medications. Note how many pills are in a bottle or pill packet, and keep track of refills. This goes for their own medication, as well as for teens and other members of the household.
• If you find you have to refill medication more often than expected, someone may be taking your medication without your knowledge.
• If your teen has been prescribed a drug, be sure you control the medication and monitor dosages and refills.

Proper Disposal.

Federal guidelines recommend ways to dispose of your prescription drugs when they are no longer needed:

• Take unused, unneeded or expired prescription drugs out of their original containers.
• Mix them with an undesirable substance (like used coffee grounds or kitty litter), put the mixture in an empty can or bag, and throw this in the trash.
• Remove any personal, identifiable information from prescription bottles or pill packages before you throw them away.
• Read drug insert directions; unless otherwise stated, do NOT flush medications down the drain or toilet because the chemicals can pollute the water supply.

The FDA advises that the following drugs should be flushed down the toilet instead of thrown in the trash:

• fentanyl citrate – actiq®
• methylphenidate – daytrana transdermal patch®
• fentanyl – duragesic transdermal system®
• oxycodone – oxycontin® tablets
• morphine sulfate – avinza® capsules
• entecavir – baraclude® tablets
• atazanavir sulfate – reyataz® capsules
• gatifloxacin – tequin® tablets
• stavudine – zerit for oral solution®
• meperidine hcl tablets –
• oxycodone and acetaminophen – percocet®
• sodium oxybate – xyrem®
• fentanyl buccal tablet – fentora®

Ask friends and family to get involved.

Make sure your friends, neighbors, and relatives, especially grandparents, know about the risks, too, and encourage them to safeguard medications and regularly monitor their own medicine cabinets. If there are other households your child has access to, talk to those families, as well, about the importance of safe keeping and disposal of medications.

Understand the role that the Internet plays in fostering prescription drug abuse and misuse among teens

Since prescription drugs are widely available in the home, teens often do not have to go far to find ways to get high. Nevertheless, a small number of teens say they get their prescription drugs illicitly. The World Wide Web also plays a big role in providing information and advice to teens.

• Some pharmacies operating on the Internet are legal, and some are not. Illicit pharmacies pretend to be authentic by operating websites that advertise powerful drugs without a prescription or with the "approval" of a "doctor" working for the drug trafficking network. Teens have access to these websites and are exposed to offers of prescription drugs through email spam or advertising. Parents should be aware of which sites their children visit and should scan credit card and bank statements for drug purchases.
• Teens sometimes brag about their drug use on social networking sites such as MySpace, advertising their behavior to future employers, college admissions offices, and others.
• The Internet is a tremendous resource for teens to learn about the dangers of drug abuse. However, it is also full of information about how to use prescription drugs to get high–how much to use, what combinations work best, and what a user can expect to experience.

Get acquainted with various websites, communication methods, networking systems, and the language teens use to evade parental oversight.

Know how to talk to your child about abuse and misuse of prescription and over-the-counter medications

Talk to your child about the risks of prescription and over-the-counter medications. Tell them that taking prescription or over-the-counter drugs without a doctor’s approval and supervision can be a dangerous - even deadly - decision. Dispel the myth that these drugs are less harmful than street drugs because they are available through a doctor or at the local drug store. Share specific facts about drugs and how teens are known to abuse them.

Talking to your child about prescription and over-the-counter medications.

For many parents, bringing up the subject of drug abuse, just like alcohol abuse, is difficult. Your teen may try to dodge the discussion, and you yourself may feel unsure about how to proceed.

To boost your chances for a productive conversation, take some time to think through the issues you want to discuss before you talk with your child. Try to anticipate how your child might react and ways you might respond to your child’s questions and feelings. Choose a time to talk when both you and your child have some "down time" and are feeling relaxed.

Keep in mind that you don’t need to cover everything at once. In fact, you’re likely to have a greater impact on your child’s behavior by having a number of talks throughout his or her adolescence. Think of this discussion with your child as the first part of an ongoing conversation. And remember-do make it a conversation, not a lecture! In initiating conversations about prescription drug misuse, consider the following:

• Listen. The key to effective communicating is being a good listener. With kids, it is important to make the time to listen to them, especially when they’re ready to talk; responding with "just a minute" or "not right now" only discourages them from opening up to you. When your kids want to talk, try to drop what you’re doing and devote your full attention to what they are saying.
• Know what to say. You’ve listened and now you want to try to get the conversation going. Perhaps most important is finding your own words, times and places that are comfortable for you to talk.
• Make time. Establishing regular "together time" with your child does a lot to encourage talking. It doesn’t have to be elaborate-taking a walk, going out for ice cream, or being together in the car when it’s just the two of you are all great opportunities to listen. Remember, if your child isn’t in the habit of opening up with you, be patient.
• Talk one on one. If you have more than one child, try to talk to each one separately, even when it’s about the same topic. Children of varied ages are often at different developmental levels and need different information, have different sensitivities and require different vocabularies.

In talking with your child, share with them what you have learned about the dangers of abusing prescription drugs. Consider the attitudes towards prescription and over-the-counter drugs that prevail in your community. How does your community deal with the hazards of non-medical drug use? Has your community embraced the practice of safe storage and disposal of prescription drugs? Showing that you are interested in these issues shows your child your commitment to reduce prescription and over-the-counter drug abuse in your community.

For more facts about youth prescription drug abuse and misuse, see:

• Facts on Prescription Drug Misuse
• Prevalence of Misuse
• Consequences of Misuse