Tennessee Together Student Survey Highlights Opportunity for Parents to Prevent Youth Substance Use
February 18, 2020
Nashville, TN – Parents have a valuable opportunity to influence their children’s use of substances if they approach the conversation in early middle school grades, but these conversations are only happening for about half of Tennessee youth. That is one of the primary takeaways highlighted by the first-ever TN Together Student Survey.
This data shows that Tennessee youth appear to misuse alcohol and marijuana at lower rates than national averages. Rates of misuse of prescription pain relievers are comparable to the national average and tobacco use is about two percent higher than the national average. Comparing state-specific statistics over time, Tennessee youth reported misusing alcohol, tobacco, and pain relievers at lower rates in 2016–2017 than in 2011–2012.
