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As A Parent, Here’s How You Can Help Your Children If They Are Addicted To Drugs

An Indian child looks out of a bus window. Half of their face is covered by their mother's arm.

Drug addiction is one of the biggest problems in Bangladesh at the moment. Drug addiction refers to being addicted to drugs.

Drugs that cause addiction, loss of desire to acquire knowledge and memory, have been termed as drugs in the textbooks of Bangladesh. In a broad sense, drugs are substances that cause significant negative changes in the physical and mental condition of the people using them.

This can lead to dependence on them, as well as an increase in the consumption of those products. Cigarettes, bidis, tobacco, cigars, alcohol, tadi, marijuana, charas, cannabis, marijuana, heroin, phencidyl, morphine, yaba, etc. are drugs.

Although there are no official statistics regarding drug addicts in Bangladesh, according to a private estimate in 2019, the number of drug addicts in the country is over 65 lakh.

Inhalants have a high abuse potential among children and adolescents, due to their easy availability. Photo credit: Sorwar Alam, Andolu Agency.

According to the Prevention of Drug Abuse (MANAS), 80% of the drug addicts are teenagers and young adults. Even in 2021, the number of teenagers and young drug addicts remains high.

In 2016, the founding president of the same private organisation and a member of the National Drug Control Advisory Committee, professor Arup Ratan Chowdhury had said that there are 2.5 million children and adolescents in Bangladesh, under the age of 18, who are addicts.

Needless to say, in any discussion on drug addiction, how to keep the country’s children and adolescents safe from the clutches of drugs is very relevant. And of course, parents can play the biggest role in preventing children and adolescents from taking drugs.

If you are a parent, you must be aware of your child’s physical and mental well-being, and make sure that they do not become addicted in any way. How to make sure they are safe? Let’s find out!

Why Do Young People Use Drugs?

You first need to know why children and adolescents use drugs. There are a variety of factors behind their drug use. They are first introduced to drugs in a social setting, usually, where drugs are readily available.

In the context of Bangladesh, my country, most of the children and adolescents are get addicted to drugs at school or in their neighbourhood, via their peers.

At a seminar on the problem of drug addiction in the Bangladesh context, organised by the Science and Culture Council of the computer department of Dhaka University this year, it was said that at school-college level , 8% of the students are addicted to drugs.

Also, both adolescent boys and girls are addicted to drugs.

In the context of Bangladesh, the first acquaintance with drugs is mainly through smoking, as cigarettes are very readily available in this country. Children and teenagers can easily buy cigarettes from shops saying they are buying it for adults.

Although many people do not want to accept smoking as a form of drug addiction, a study has found that 98% of the drug addicts in Bangladesh are smokers.

The situation is that many people smoke cigarettes even if they are not attracted to any other drug, and those who use other drugs are more likely to be smokers. So, if someone is a smoker, they are more likely to be addicted to other drugs than a non-smoker.

Drug use in children can be due to feelings of insecurity, or a desire to gain social acceptance. Many also refer to drug use as an “age fault”.

After all, children and adolescents are much more reckless, and they participate in activities without thinking about the consequences. It is this recklessness that can push children and adolescents towards drug abuse.

Risk Factors That May Lead To Drug Abuse

  1. History of drug use in the family.
  2. Mental or behavioural conditions, such as depression, anxiety, or attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
  3. The tendency to take emotional or unreasonable risks.
  4. A history of traumatic events such as witnessing a car accident, or being physically and emotionally abused.
  5. Fragile self-esteem, or feelings of social rejection.

Consequences Of Child And Adolescent Addiction

The negative consequences of drug addiction in children and adolescents include:

Talk To Your Children About Drugs

The best way to make children and adolescents aware of any issue, is to talk to them directly and openly. If your child or teenager is not a drug addict, but you are worried about their future, you must talk to them about it.

They should be told about the harmful effects of cigarettes, alcohol and other drugs, and why they should not use them.

It would be foolish to expect your child or adolescent to fully understand the evils of drug addiction, and obey you word for word, after just one conversation.

You may need to take part in several conversations with them, And, in this case, you have to choose a time when your discussions won’t be interrupted because of external factors like a phone call or work meeting.

At the same time, you should understand that you should not talk about such a sensitive issue randomly. For example, when you are angry with your child, when you are not ready to answer their questions, or when your child is physically and mentally unbalanced due to the effects of drugs, such a discussion might not be fruitful.

What Should That Conversation Look Like?

What Else Can You Do To Help Children?

You can do other things to protect your child from drugs, such as:

Some Red Flags To Look Out For

If you suddenly see the following behaviors in your child, your child might be addicted to drugs:

Seek Professional Help If You Can

If you begin to suspect or find evidence that your child is addicted to drugs, do the following:

Lastly, remember that as a parent you have a responsibility to take care of your child. What you say to your child today might determine their future.

So, whether your child is addicted to drugs or not, start discussing the harmful aspects of drugs with them today. Make sure your child’s future is happy, beautiful and healthy.

Featured image is for representational purposes only. Photo credit: Pixabay.
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