The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has an informative page called High Risk Substance Use Among Youth, defined as adolescent use of substances “with a high risk of adverse outcomes.”

• Injury
• Law breaking
• School dropout
• Death

Sections include:

• Facts
• Risk Factors
• Prevention
• CDC action
• Resources

Great to include in a Parent Newsletter! The Surgeon General’s Advisory on E-cigarette Use Among Youth is posted on the Center for Disease Control (CDC) website, and is available in English and in Spanish. The Advisory:

• Describes the youth e-cigarette epidemic
• Describes the objects used
• Lists the device names
• Urges coordinated efforts at multiple levels
• Offers role-specific information, including:
  • Teacher-specific
  • Parent-specific

Just Think Twice is an official website of the U. S. government. The site provides detailed information about: 31 different drugs, 37 people recovering from addiction who share their true stories, 22 consequences of drug use, and 68 Facts and Stats including a Fentanyl Quiz. In addition there are videos for:

• Protect Your Brain: Why Age of First Use Matters (1:32)
• What is Addiction?
  • Episode 1: The Hijacker (3:17)
  • Episode 2: Whirlpools of Risk (2:32)
  • Episode 3: Understanding Severity (3:24)
  • Episode 4: Don’t Wait for ‘Rock Bottom’ (3:02)

Health teachers! Know the Risks: E-Cigarettes and Young People, from the United States Surgeon General, is a comprehensive website. Pages include:

• Facts:
  • How an e-cigarette works
  • How e-cigarettes are marketed
  • How businesses are benefiting
  • Appeal to teens
  • Teen beliefs
  • Teen usage trends
  • Public Health Impacts
• Risks:
  • To brain
  • Of addiction
  • To behavior
  • Of using multiple nicotine sources
  • Of aerosol inhalation

The Mayo Clinic article Teen drug abuse: Help your teen avoid drugs is directed to parents, and includes:

• Risks and reasons
• Consequences
• Health effects
• Talking with teens
• Other preventive strategies
• Warning signs
• Seeking help

One Pill Can Kill is a campaign to make the public aware that “the DEA Laboratory has found that, of the fentanyl-laced fake prescription pills analyzed in 2022, six out of ten now contain a potentially lethal dose of fentanyl.” The campaign offers:

• A Public Service Announcement video
• An information sheet for parents
• A fake pill fact sheet
• Graphics for social media
• Sample posts for social media
• A PowerPoint presentation geared for adults

Song for Charlie is a non-profit charity organization, started and run by the parents of Charlie Ternan, who, at age 22 and about to graduate from college, died from taking a pill he thought was percocet, but contained fentanyl.

• Inquiry Learning includes seven examples of questions to pose to students, and eight additional sets of resources
• Real Talk about Fake Pills, a library of more than thirty videos, two of which are also available in Spanish
• Classroom Lesson Materials, developed by staff of the Beaverton School District in the State of Oregon. Slides, videos and articles for students, based on the DEA One Pill Can Kill information campaign, are FREE.
  • One Middle School Lesson, about 45 minutes
  • One High School Lesson, 60 – 90 minutes
  • One Mini Lesson (advisory), 15 – 30 minutes
  • One Teachers Guide for high school teachers
  • One additional video, 7:25, called Cal’s Story, told by Cal’s parents

Also linked on the Song for Charlie page are:

• The Beaverton School District’s Fentanyl Awareness page with yet more resources
• Operation Prevention- Counterfeit Drugs
• Operation Prevention- Opioid and Prescription Drug Resources
• The Ad Council’s Real Deal on Fentanyl, Chemistry, Economics and Health Lessons
• Matthew’s Voice Learning Materials
  • Fentanyl and other Drugs: Unit for 9th Grade
  • Fentanyl and and Other Drugs: Unit for 9th Grade NC Essential Standards 9.ATOD.1 and 9.ATOD.2