Teens and Drugged Driving Statistics – NIDA Report

Drunk driving was one of the major serious concerns earlier. Blood alcohol concentration of 0.08 percent is the legal limit in the United States. It was found that BAC of more than 0.08 percent impairs driving performance. However, the most important issue to be considered today is the drugged driving. Driving under the influence of drugs is found to impair the motor skills, reaction time and judgment. Hence, drugged driving is a serious issue of risk for drivers and it also affects the passengers.

As per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, most of the deaths among young people aged 16 to 19 were because of vehicle accidents. As teens have the least experience in driving, they are more prone to the risk of being involved in accidents. Also, most of the teens are linked to usage of illegal drugs like marijuana, cocaine and others which have an effect on the motor and cognitive abilities. In combination of the above two issues, there are more chances that teens are prone to accidents during driving.

The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) conducted “Monitoring the Future Survey” which revealed that in 2007, more than 12 percent of high school seniors admitted to driving under the influence of marijuana in the two weeks prior to the survey. According to the 2009 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), an estimated 6.3 percent of teens aged 16 or 17 drove under the influence of drug or alcohol in 2009. It was even stated that 24.8 percent of young adults aged 21 to 25 were involved in driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol. It has, therefore, become necessary to focus on hazards related to drugged driving apart from the drunken driving.