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Risk
Behavior
Risk behavior”
refers to things youth might do that can place them in danger or
have a negative impact on their growth and development. Risky
behavior can lead to injury, poor school performance, addiction,
delinquency, or lifestyle changes like pregnancy at a young age.
In this section, we cover a number of risky behaviors, including:
- Alcohol Use
The legal age to consume alcoholic beverages in the state of
Florida is twenty-one. However, more than half of the children
surveyed in Pinellas County began experimenting with alcohol by
the eighth grade. Alcohol consumption can have a negative impact
on a child’s ability to learn, increase their likelihood of being
arrested, and increase the likelihood that they will use marijuana
and other drugs.
- Tobacco use
Smoking cigarettes and chewing tobacco have both been linked to
cancer. Like alcohol, tobacco use can harm a child’s ability to
learn.
- Illicit drug
use
Household chemicals and medications can be abused just like
marijuana, cocaine or other drugs. Illicit drug use can cause
immediate harm to children and impede their future development.
Abuse of some of the drugs in this category can affect brain
chemistry and result in problems with learning new information and
memory.
-- Marijuana
Marijuana use puts a child’s physical
health and development in jeopardy as well as their ability to
reason and learn. Chronic or long-term use also damages the lungs.
-- Inhalants
Inhalants include many household
products that are usually present in any home and accessible to
children. Because of that accessibility abuse of these drugs seems
to begin relatively early compared with other substances. Despite
the fact that these substances are readily available, even to
children, they pose many of the same health risks of other tightly
controlled substances.
-- Prescription/Non-Prescription Drugs
- Teen
sexuality
Early sexual activity is associated with emotional and physical
health risks. Sexually Transmitted Infections (STI's) and
pregnancy are among the risks children take when they become
sexually active. STI's can lead to disability and early
death. Teen pregnancy is associated with long term
difficulties for the mother as well as her child.
Read More About It:
Reducing the Teen Death Rate
Resilient Girls—Factors That Protect Against Delinquency
Pinellas County Schools
2006 Youth Risk Behavior Survey Report
http://www.jwbpinellas.org/Home/FINAL2006YRBS041107.pdf
2006 Prevalence of
Substance Use among Pinellas County Students, Part I: Trends in
Substance Use
http://www.jwbpinellas.org/Data/2006PrevalenceofSubUsePart%20I.pdf
Florida Department of Children and Families
Florida Youth Substance Abuse Survey 2008
http://www.dcf.state.fl.us/mentalhealth/publications/fysas/
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