Data from a new survey about risky behavior among teens has just been released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The numbers show that nearly half of Rhode Island teenagers have texted while driving a car.
About one in four teenagers reported currently using marijuana. Rhode Island’s child psychiatrists recently issued a statement expressing their concern about this increase and its potential effects on developing brains.
Among other risky behaviors: suicide. About 12 percent of teens said they made a plan to kill themselves in 2015; that’s up from about nine percent of teens in 2013.
Fewer teens smoked cigarettes regularly in 2015. But about one in five is vaping – or using electronic cigarettes.
The Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System data is based on surveys with young people across the nation. It monitors six categories of behaviors that contribute to a teen’s health. Those include everything from injury prevention to sexual behavior to drug use to healthy eating.