While binge-drinking remains a very serious health issue, the report also showed that rates of alcohol and other drug use are down substantially since 1979. Commissioner Jean Somers Miller said the detailed analysis provides important information for college and community groups to plan prevention, intervention and treatment programs.
Students believe substance use is much more common than it is.
While 92 percent believed that the average student smoked marijuana at least once per year, only 34 percent actually reported such use. And 88 percent thought the average student smoked cigarettes regularly, but only 32 percent reported such. Compared to a similar survey in the state in 1979, the use of all substances was down. Students who drank at least once per month decreased from 87 percent to 66. Students who smoked marijuana at least once per month fell from 51 percent to 23.