Reported use of heroin for white parents was 3 percent in 1993 and 2 percent in 1995. For Hispanic parents, reported use of heroin went from 3 percent in 1993 to 6 percent in 1995. Parents' Attitudes About Drugs. 26 percent of parents agreed that they would be more worried if their child smoked marijuana than if they were drinking to get drunk, and the same percent said they would worry more about their child smoking cigarettes than trying marijuana. 79 percent of parents responded that parents should tell their children never to use drugs at all, and 76 percent said they would be upset if their child tried marijuana.
Parents underestimate teens' exposure to and use of drugs.
34 percent of parents of teens in grades 7-12 say their children may have been offered drugs, while 52 percent of teens in that grade range say they were. Only 19 percent say they talk with parents often, while 30 percent say they have discussed drugs once or twice and 20 percent say they have never discussed drugs. African American teens are more likely to say they talk with their parents often about drugs than white or Hispanic students. The survey found an apparent communication gap between parents and their children about drug education. 95 percent of parents of teens in grades 7-12 say they have talked with their children about drugs, but only 77 percent of teens say they have.