Teenagers are vulnerable to aquiring substance abuse disorders. This has much to do with their functional and neurocognitive brain development and how the areas of the brain manage the child’s feelings and cognition (Wiers, Boelema, Nikolaou, & Gladwin, 2015). It is estimated that by the time adolescents become high school seniors 70% had tried alcohol, 50% had tried an illegal drug and 20% had taken prescription medications that may, or may not, have been prescribed to them. There are a number of reasons adolescents abuse these substances such as to deal with stress or personal problems, to fit in or seem cool around other peers, or just to try the experience. While some may be able to try these substances and that be the end of it, others find the substances may help them cope with things, one way or another. (NIH Staff, 2014).…
Growing up and entering the teenage years exposes young people to new things that they have never had to deal with before, such as drugs. Many children do not know how to handle a situation when faced with drugs, which opens the possibility of bad decision making. Just one bad decision can lead to a lifetime of addiction and struggling. The use of dangerous drugs is a growing issue amongst teens in real life while also depicted in modern works of literature such as Crank and Go Ask Alice.…
Teenage drug abuse is one of the largest problems in society today and the problem grows and larger every year. Drugs are a pervasive force in our culture today. To expect kids not to be influenced by the culture of their time is as “unrealistic as believing in the tooth fairy,” (Jauman 140). Teens may feel pressured by their friends to try drugs, they may have easy access to drugs, they may use drugs to rebel against their family or society, or they may take an illegal drug because they are curious about it or the pleasure that it gives…
The article starts out with talking about how obesity the United States has become and the increasing of physical activity and health dieting will help the reduce of diabetes and cardiovascular diseases when getting older. The article also describes about the freshmen 15 that is caused by eating junk food and lack of physical activity. The article also states that many college students do workout but are exercising at a lower intensity and duration.…
Obesity occurs when an individual has more body fat then what is considered healthy for their height. People who have excess body fat are more likely to develop health issues then non-obese people. Sadly, obesity has become an epidemic in our nation, spreading throughout both the adult and adolescent communities. “Recent studies have shown that 17 percent of the nation’s 6- to 19-year-olds are obese, and that more than a third are overweight. Those rates have about doubled in the past three decades,” (Hotakainen 2012). Unquestionably, there have been many changes in our culture over the last 30 years. Technology and modern conveniences have transformed the way people work and play in the 21st century. Currently, many young people find themselves trying to keep up with schedules that, in most cases, leave little time for healthy choices. Thus, many children find it difficult to maintain their ideal body weight. Undeniably, there are many different lifestyle factors responsible for the obesity issue affecting our American youth today.…
Another key issue is a child’s use of technology, which has led to lack of exercise. Technology driven society has promoted children to stay inside, rather than going outside and playing. In recent years, our society has tried to counteract these factors by creating healthier menu options, and programs to promote…
Increasing abuse of prescription drugs among teens can be attributed to psychological, environmental, or behavioral conditions.Drug abuse in teens can be linked to other disorders or conditions which lead to drug abuse. Teens who abuse drugs are likely to become adults who abuse drugs. It is necessary to understand and address these underlying issues if successful prevention is to happen. First it is necessary to understand the magnitude of the problem…
The past three decades in the world have seen the number of young people with obesity increase by nearly a triple. This is according to reports from the National Center for Health Statistics (Eisenberg, Radunovich, & Brennan, 2013). Obesity is rarely caused by genetic or hormonal defects, and the main reason for the high occurrence of obesity, therefore, is the high intake of calories than an individual can burn. As much as the major reasons for the overall increase in the number of overweight and obese adolescents is not known, the most common theory is that the society has become more successful. This implies that adolescents…
Teens drop out of school after being addicted to the use of drugs. A program like DARE was given to students in middle school, but it is important for teens to also be aware of the risk in high school. If students are offered drugs and they know the consequences they are more likely to refuse rather than try using drugs. When teens use drugs it’s likely for family and health issues to occur. When students are taught about the risk they can get good grades and achieve their…
This article list the specifics on the benefits for teens to be fit. It says that physical activity doesn’t have to be time consuming but it is necessary for everyone. Some of the facts about teen exercise given by this article are that nearly half of American children ages twelve through twenty-one are not regularly active. About fourteen percent of young people report no physical activity at all. Also, only nineteen percent of all high school students are active for twenty minutes or more, five days a week. The main focuses point of the article are the physical activity helps build healthy bones, muscles and joints. It helps control weight, build lean muscle, and reduce fat.…
For Bellmont High School our band always does concessions for football, basketball and wrestling season. In order for us who are in band to get our patches for our letterman jacket we must do eight concessions. Although, if we don't have eight concessions for each year done by the time we graduate the students, who don't have them don, can't graduate without paying a $100 fine. Well sometimes there are difficulties to get all eight in. I think that the people who don't have their eight in shouldn't have to pay that fine.…
There are so many prevalent health issues that need to be addressed in today’s society. Since children are considered to be our hope for the future, I chose to research the epidemic of childhood obesity. As an aspiring physical education teacher or as alarmed to learn that “prevalence for overweight children aged 6-11 years has almost tripled in 25 years, increasing from 6.5% to 18.8% between 1980 and 2004 (1).” Of course there are so many contributing factors to this increase in weight in today’s world. In my opinion, children spend the majority of their days being sedentary in school and often come home to play video or computer games. After…
Children who’s norms involve sitting in front of the television watching Netflix while eating a McDonalds happy meal, have quickly raised the national average with a percentage of adolescents (age twelve to nineteen) who are obese, being eighteen, (in increase in 1980’s low five percent). Children ages six to eleven years old have increased eleven percent from 1980’s seven percent. And young children age’s two to five have an obesity percentage of twelve percent. Childhood obesity has more than doubled, and quadrupled in adolescents in the past thirty years, leaving one third of both children and adolescents obese by 2012. Childhood obesity is now the number one health concern in American parents, ahead of both drug and alcohol abuse. The question on everyone’s mind is why are American children overweight and unhealthy? What is different about the 21st century that has caused a spike in obesity? There are multiple theories, reasons and answers to those questions, one being, with rapid technological advances in a fast paced society (increasing as each generation passes) values are replaced and lost. Exercise is replaced by video games, and fruit is replaced by cakes and cookies. Along with genetic factors, the truth is obesity is caused by lack of physical activity and unhealthy eating/eating habits and patterns (or a combination of both). Fast food has no longer become a treat, but an everyday eat…
Teen substance abuse continues to be a significant problem in US. While they may find new substances to abuse for time to time, teens are still using drugs and alcohol as an escape from the typical issues plaguing America's youth. Perhaps by taking an honest look at the numbers, we can all get some insight as to the depth of the problems and how we can best address them.…
Many doctors are seeing the annual physical check as an old fashioned practice for people over 18 and under the age of 50 who are healthy. Some health experts say annual physicals are nothing but a waste of time and money for many people.…