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Women and Substance Abuse

NCJ Number
188493
Date Published
2000
Length
5 pages
Annotation
After describing the consequences for women's health of alcohol, tobacco, or other drugs, this paper presents a list of national organizations, publications, community stories, and community leaders with an expertise in women and substance abuse.
Abstract
According to the Center for Substance Abuse, among 12- to 17-year-olds, females surpass males in the use of cigarettes, cocaine, crack, inhalants, and prescription drugs for nonmedical reasons. Alcohol, tobacco, and other drug abuse (ATOD) can have devastating consequences on women's health. Lung cancer rates among females, for example, have increased sixfold in the past 40 years, until it has now passed breast cancer as the leading fatal cancer for women. Women who abuse alcohol and/or drugs are at particular risk for sexual assault, unprotected sex, unwanted pregnancies, and sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV/AIDS. The use of alcohol, tobacco, and/or other drugs during pregnancy continues to be a leading preventable cause of mental, physical, and psychological impairments and problems in infants and children. This paper lists 19 national organizations that address ATOD abuse and its consequences among women, along with five relevant publications and how to order them. Contact information for six community leaders is provided as well. Two community-based ATOD programs for women are briefly described.