It is no secret to most parents that there are teenagers who experiment with drugs. Teens and even pre-teens from every demographic, region, and socio-economic group can fall prey to bad choices.
However, until recently parents did not have all the tools to be able to know for certain if their child had been using illegal drugs.
Now, with home drug tests on the market, teens should be scared ... very scared. Parents can now drug test them at will right in the comfort (or discomfort) of their home.
Most drug tests check for the most often abused substances including marijuana, oxycodone and cocaine. Even prescription drugs will show up on FDA-approved test kits like Teensavers Home Drug Test Kit.
Since it is estimated that on average 6,000 kids will try drugs for the first time everyday, and that some of them will be as young as 8, it is necessary for parents to have viable, accurate tools to know if their child is using drugs.
The Teensavers Home Drug Test Kit is one of only three home drug test kits approved by the FDA for over-the-counter sales.
The founder of this company, Steve Stahovich, knows something about teenagers using drugs, because he used to be a teen addict.
After being clean and sober for over 19 years, and working in the drug abuse treatment industry for many years, he created this product to save teens who are going down the same road he'd been on. He put together the best science to detect drug use as well as the emotional and physical support that families who get a positive result will need.
The support included in the Teensavers kit gives parents direct access to help by way of a free 24/7 phone support. This is something that is missing in some other kits.
Parents who need answers on drug classifications, recognizing the signs of drug abuse, instructions on how to read the tests, or what to do when the Teensaver test comes back with a positive result can call the help line to access answers at any time.
Along with the test itself, the kit also comes with a parental support guide written by adolescent drug treatment expert Tim Chapman. It also includes free lab confirmation to help families understand what amount of drug their kids are using.
The Teensaver Home Drug Test Kit and other tests are available over the counter at most mass market and drug stores.
In a recent article in the OC Register, Stahovich was quoted as saying, “Drugs don’t discriminate; they don’t go after people who have licenses or insurance, they don’t stay away from kids who earn straight A’s. They target everyone."
He urges parents to get their heads out of the sand and see if their kids are doing drugs. And if they are not, then random drug testing can be a strong deterrent for future use.
Sources:
Myteensavers.com. Web. 12 December 2012. "About." http://www.myteensavers.com/about_us.html
OCRegister.com. Web. Published 19 September 2012. "TeenSavers hopes to tackle teen drug abuse before it's a problem".
http://www.ocregister.com/articles/drug-371969-problem-tackle.html
Reviewed December 13, 2012
by Michele Blacksberg RN
Edited by Jody Smith