Drug Use By Early Teens At Record Lows

School is out for winter break. The kids will have a ton of unsupervised free time on their hands .  Just how worried should parents be?  Well, there is this bit of good news for nervous moms and dads in this modern age.   Fewer American teenagers are using illegal drugs or alcohol, according to a new report released this week.

In fact, rates of drug abuse are at a record low for eighth-graders, according to the research by the University of Michigan and the National Institutes of Health. That goes for drugs from opioids to marijuana to nicotine.

However, the report noted a troubling increase in marijuana use among older teens in some states. Fully 44 percent of all those ages 17 and 18 said they’ve tried it.