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1. In 2010, enough prescription painkillers were prescribed to medicate every American adult every 4 hours for 1 month.
2. Unintentional poisoning deaths involving psychotherapeutic drugs, such as sedatives and antidepressants, grew 84% from 1999 to 2004.
3. 5.6% of 12th graders report having used tranquilizers for nonmedical purposes in the past year
4. 2.6 Million Americans reported using tranquilizers for nonmedical purposes in the past month
5. Every day in the United States, an average of 2,000 teenagers use prescription drugs without a doctor's guidance for the first time
6. 1 in 4 reports having misused or abused a prescription drug at least once in their lifetime, which translates to about 5 million teens. That is a 33 percent increase over a five-year period
7. Over 27% of teens mistakenly believe that misusing and abusing prescription drugs is safer than using street drugs
8. 11% of Americans aged 12 years over use antidepressant medication.
9. More than 60% of Americans taking antidepressants have taken it for 2 years or longer, with 14% having taken the medication for 10 years or more.
10. 1 out of 12 high school seniors surveyed reported non-medical prescription opioid use in the past year
11. Opioids were the most commonly abused over the counter prescription drug (5.1 million out of 7 million OTC abusers).
12. 1 in 15 people who take non-medical prescription pain relievers will try heroin within 10 years.
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