The report, entitled "Age of First Use Among Admissions for Drugs: 1993 and 2003," notes that the percentage of people getting treatment admitted to starting their drug use before age 13 increased between 1993 and 2003 for marijuana and opiates.
Opiates include prescription pain medications and heroin.
There was a decline for cocaine admissions (from 5 percent to 4 percent) and for stimulant admissions (from 10 percent to 9 percent), which also include methamphetamines.
SAMHSA Administrator Charles Curie says, "Age at first use is an important predictor of the potential for serious substance abuse problems later in life."
He continues, "The increase in the proportion of admissions for drug use before age 13 should be a wake-up call to parents to speak with their children early and often about the dangers of drug use."
The report notes that for some admissions, initiation into the drug lifestyle may have started even earlier, with a first drug that was abandoned for another drug or drugs introduced later on.
