In the past, illicit drugs were popular among teens for getting high. Now the frontier has changed, however, and today’s teens are abusing prescription drugs which they get from unsuspecting parents and family members. Many parents aren’t aware of this problem, and thus don’t lock up their medications. Prescription drugs such as pain killers, ADD drugs and anti depressants can be deadly if taken improperly.

Drugs that are in these three specific categories are highly dangerous, highly addictive, and are recognized as desirable by teens and even some adults. The best way to avoid your teen, their friends or others, having access to these medications is to keep all your medication in one place and under lock and key. People might believe that this is extreme, but when you have a teen and you have his or her friends in and out of the house it is very easy for them to take a few pills without you even realizing it. And believe me, if they know that your house provides access to these drugs, they will come back again and again for refills. Keeping all your drugs in one place and making access to them difficult can prevent these teens from getting into trouble.

These days the first place that teens claim to get their drugs from is their own home, either from the bathroom or other places around the house. The second most popular place to score is from other relatives homes, so if you are planning a visit to a relatives house, or if you are in close enough proximity that your kids spend a good amount of time at a relatives house, you should make them aware of this problem as well.

No family or parent wants to think that something like this could happen to their teen, but it is an important fact that must be faced. Sometimes children won’t take the drugs themselves, but instead will sell them to others at school. Peer pressure is powerful factors in the lives of teenagers and they sometimes will try things that they otherwise would never consider doing.

As a parent, don’t let your need to respect your child’s privacy force you to look the other way when signals arise. Stay in touch with your teen. Notice what they’re doing on the internet. Check their backpacks periodically. And don’t refrain from calling your child on it if you should come across something. Active parenting with open eyes is the only way you can assure your child will stay on the right path.