'100 Deadliest Days of Summer': As Heroin Crisis Escalates, Prevention Experts Warn Parents About Drinking, Xanax

Red beer pong cups and beach parties often signify the summer season for young people — but as heroin continues to receive the nationwide media spotlight, prevention advocates are reminding parents that alcohol, Xanax and other drugs continue to present dangers to kids during the "100 deadliest days of summer."

According to AAA, the "100 deadliest days" of summer begin on Memorial Day weekend and extend through Labor Day, when teen car crashes skyrocket.

Over the past five years, during the “100 Deadliest Days," AAA says research indicates an average of 1,022 people died each year in crashes involving teen drivers, and the average number of deaths from crashes involving teen drivers ages 16-19 increased by 16 daily compared to other times of the year.

And, while AAA says distracted driving, including talking, texting, cell phone use and looking at something other than the road is cited as a reason for the spike in accidents, drug and alcohol prevention experts say parents should be aware of the dangers of teen drinking and drug use during the summer months when kids are headed to drinking parties on the beach and at friends' houses.

With a nationwide battle waging to fight the escalating heroin crisis, local prevention experts say parents need to be aware of other very real and life-threatening dangers, such as the rise in popularity in Xanax as a drug of choice among young people — and the fact that alcohol remains by far the most deadly drug of all.

Xanax use on the rise

"While we are all focused on heroin and prescription painkillers, Xanax overdoses are steadily on the rise and I see more and more young people using benzos" — or, benzodiazepines, which also include Valium and Ativan — "in combination with other drugs," said Jeffrey L. Reynolds, president and CEO of the Family and Children's Association in Mineola. "That's one of the dangers of addressing substance use disorders using a 'drug du jour' model, where we address singular drugs in waves, rather than getting to the core of the problem and taking a comprehensive approach. "

According to Reynolds, similar to opioids, Xanax and other anti-anxiety meds are over-prescribed and usually stored improperly.

"Popping a pill before getting on a plane or facing a tough day has become acceptable. I'd hope that we learned some lessons over the past few years and wouldn't repeat the same mistakes," he said.

Also, he added, "Xanax detox is actually more complicated that heroin or opioids and comes with potential medical complications. We've started to hear about dealers lacing heroin with Xanax unbeknownst to the user in order to make them ineligible for admission to some addiction treatment facilities."

Alcohol, a constant threat

What parents need to remember, said both Reynolds and Kym Laube, executive director of HUGs, Inc., a youth drug and alcohol prevention organization in Westhampton Beach, is that while there are always new drugs on the horizon, "Alcohol remains the constant threat." Both Laube and Reynolds sit on New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo's new statewide heroin task force.

Laube added that new drugs such as kratom, an addictive substance that has been used for both sedative and stimulation effects, depending on dosage, according to narconon.org, as well as fentanyl, an extremely potent and synthetic opioid analgesic, have recently been found to present new dangers.

Xanax, Laube said, is also becoming more widespread as a drug of choice. "We have heard folks talking about moving to Xanax, especially as it becomes harder to get prescriptions written for the oxys," she said. "Also, we live in high-stress times, so individuals don't question it. The thought, 'I'll take a pill and I'll feel better' comes into play."

Critically important, Laube said, is that while kids are abusing or misusing ADHD medication, Valium or Xanax, adults tend to miss the point that for some, it's just a coping mechanism.

"What I am most afraid of is, as we are all paying attention to the opiate crisis, we are missing that we must have on the culture of addiction that goes far beyond any individual substance," Laube said. "We continue to look at where addiction ends, when our real focus must be on where addiction begins."

According to Laube, statistics across Long Island indicate a higher rate than the national norms when it comes to alcohol and marijuana use.

"We know they are both gateway drugs, but oftentimes, they're not seen as harmful, when, in fact, we know — more school-age kids die of alcohol use than all the illegal drugs combined," Laube said.

While there has been change, alcohol, she added, "is still a major threat. And oftentimes, it is the first substance that triggers addiction in young, developing brains."

Laube agrees with Reynolds that with the enhanced focus on heroin nationwide, all too often, the very real threats of alcohol and other drugs get forgotten.

"Parents will say, 'Thank God my kid is just drinking and doing pot.' Not understanding the inherent dangers and risks associated with that. If we focus on only one substance, then we miss the opportunity to really chance this culture that we're in," she said.

She added that heroin is often not the first drug kids use . . . drug use escalates, often beginning with alcohol, marijuana and prescription medications found in their parents' medicine cabinets.

Talk to your kids

A number of proactive programs exist to get a healthy dialogue started with kids about the dangers of alcohol and drug use, Laube said.

New York State's Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services' "Talk2Prevent" program aims to open up the lines of communication between parents and kids.

Another critical resource, she said, is Gov. Andrew Cuomo's Combat Heroin and Prescription Drug Abuse program. Also a valuable place to turn, Laube said, is the federal Partnership for Drug Free Kids.

The most important thing, Laube said, is for parents to talk to their kids — and to show kids, by acting as role models, that drinking and drugging is not the way to face problems.

"As I travel the country and listen to kids, the things kids continue to tell me, across the board, is the amount of stress that they are under is not matched by effective coping mechanisms," she said. "Kids are totally stressed out, and often they don't have the right skills sets to deal with it, so drinking, on a Friday night, or releasing with some pot, is not different than how they see adults act."

Parents need to model healthier behavior when it comes to dealing with stress and socializing, Laube said.

"We talk all the time to kids about having fun without alcohol. We need to be able to show them," she said.

Denial also is a big factor, with parents pretending their kids don't have a problem with substance abuse. "We have parents renting out big houses so kids can celebrate proms and graduations. We minimize drinking and drug use by saying it's just kids being kids. What we miss is that for some of those kids, it's actually jump starting addiction."