This article examines the prevalence of illicit drug, alcohol, and cigarette use along the U.S. side of the international border with Mexico. The National Household Survey on Drug Abuse (NHSDA) provides unique coverage of the Mexico border area, based on its design that oversamples Hispanics in areas where they tend to be concentrated. The prevalence of drug use along the border is very similar to that found throughout the remainder of the United States. However, Hispanics residing near the border exhibit lowerprevalence ratesfor most classes of drugs than their counterparts in the remainder of the United States. Conversely, Hispanic youth report comparatively higherprevalence rates. These findings imply that we must remain vigilant in our prevention efforts in the border area to keep drug use from escalating.
This paper examines the prevalence of alcohol, tobacco and illicit drug use in the Southwest border region of the United States. Based on the seriousness of drug trafficking in the area, the Southwest border has been designated a "High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area." Yet there is little quantitative data on the nature and magnitude of drug use in the Southwest border region. This paper examines the prevalence of drug use in the area by extracting data from the National Household Survey on Drug Abuse. The data show that drug use rates in the Southwest border area are very similar to those found throughout the remainder of the United States. Hispanics, who constitute about 41% of the Southwest border population, have lower prevalence rates for most classes of drugs than non-Hispanics. The border Hispanics exhibit even lower prevalence rates than Hispanics in the remainder of the United States. However, many of these differences are attributable to the lower levels of drug use among women, and youth and older adults. As these demographic subgroups become increasingly acculturated, their drug use could come to more closely resemble that of their peers in the remainder of the United States.
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