Increase in number of girls seeking addiction treatment

AN INCREASE in the number of 15-year-old girls seeking drug and alcohol treatment over the last year has been reported by the country’s main residential treatment centre.

In the last year the Aislinn centre has raised the number of beds it provides by 20 per cent in order to cope with the increase in demand, the centre’s director Declan Jones said at the launch of its annual report.

The Aislinn centre provides the State’s only drug-free residential treatment programme for young people aged between 15 and 21 who are dependent on alcohol or drugs.

Aislinn, based in Ballyragget, Co Kilkenny, provided treatment for 135 adolescents in 2008 and has treated 1,141 young people since it opened over 10 years ago.

The culture of drink in Ireland and tolerance of alcohol is a large contributor towards the increasing problem of youth addiction, Mr Jones told The Irish Times, adding that the attitude of parents towards drink is very influential.

The young people being treated for addiction are from all socioeconomic backgrounds, he said.

Children in Ireland begin to drink alcohol from as young an age as 11, according to anecdotal evidence from Aislinn.

The centre has found that alcohol is a gateway drug for some young people, who will start to feel “under the weather” with drinking and are then more likely to experiment with drugs.

It is very unusual for 15-year-olds to attend for treatment with just alcohol problems, but they come in with a combination of alcohol, illicit drug and prescription drugs issues, Mr Jones said.

Addiction stops the emotional development of young people, who can spend a long time playing catch-up after they become clean, he said. More than just the immediate aftermath of addiction was at issue, he warned, as there are physical consequences later in life as a result of abuse.

The centre is concerned that the rate of teenage addiction has not been quantified and is only based on anecdotal figures.

“The addiction problem is increasing constantly, yet the State has never assessed the scale of the issue nor put in place a unified approach to arrest its growth,” Mr Jones said.