NJ Teen Drug Use By the Numbers

Ever wonder how many teenagers really abuse drugs and alcohol in the Garden State? Here are the statistics.

• A report by the Partnership for a Drug Free NJ found that the addiction rate in teens is not affected by whether they live in an urban, rural or suburban community

• 39% of ‘tweens and teens ages 12–17 in NJ admitted to smoking marijuana at least once – US Department of Health and Human Services 

• The Governor’s Council on Alcohol & Drug Abuse found that NJ has some of the cheapest, purist heroin in the country. A bag of heroin can be bought for as little as $5.

• New Jersey has the sixth highest rate of fatal youth drug overdoses in the country, according to a 2015 report by the watchdog organization the trust for America's Health. 

• 10.7% of all deaths among people ages 12-25 are the result of a drug overdose. 

• 15% of NJ teens in grades 9–12 say they drank alcohol for the first time before age 13, compared to 19% of teens nationally, according to the US Department of Health and Human Services

• 70% of NJ teens who abuse prescription drugs say they get them from a friend or relative – National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence 

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