Adolescence is a period of dynamic brain development: this is the time when teens are truly learning how to think rationally, make practical decisions, and build a substantial skill set for the future. During the teenage years, the brain is especially malleable, making adolescence a window for opportunity as well as vulnerability. It is also the time in which most teens initiate drug and alcohol use. Turning Point hopes that this infographic will reach parents who want to educate their children about the risks of drug use. And that while, yes, their teen may be making bad decisions at this time, his or her brain is still developing. The brain’s plasticity in adolescence makes it absolutely critical to act early and get treatment as soon as possible. Early intervention truly is the key to preventing substance addiction down the road.

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FRONTAL LOBE: The thinking
center, or CEO of the brain. Controls
decision-making, problem solving,
judgment, and self-control. The last
lobe to fully mature.
PARIETAL LOBE: Receives
and processes sensory
information from the body.
Immature until age 16.
TEMPORAL LOBE:
Responsible for memory,
emotion, hearing, and
language. Still developing
after age 16.
6.9% of 12 to 17
year-olds today already
meet the standard
psychiatric criteria for
SUBSTANCE USE.
Teenagers who
begin using any
addictive substance
before age 18 are
more likely
to develop a
substance
use disorder.
1 IN 4 Americans who began using any addictive
substance BEFORE AGE 18 are addicted compared to
1 IN 25 who started using at AGE 21 OR OLDER.
For more information on how to
overcome addiction please call Turning
Point at 877-581-1793 or send an email
to info@tpaddictiontreatment.com
Sources:
http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/the-teen-brain-still-under-construction/teen-brain_141903.pdf
http://www.drugfree.org/why-do-teens-act-this-way/adolescent-brain-development/ • http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2475802/
https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=VPRQBAAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PR9&dq=the+adolescent+brain+malleability&ots=f1TGrPQv_p&sig=2jdXjZWHLHkitw2erxI9DaD
YIYY#v=onepage&q=gray%20matter&f=false • http://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/nationwide-trends
http://www.monitoringthefuture.org//pubs/monographs/mtf-overview2014.pdf • http://www.fit.edu/caps/articles/facts.php
http://preventteendruguse.org/pdfs/AmerDropoutCrisis.pdf • http://www.casacolumbia.org/addiction-research/reports/adolescent-substance-use
http://begun.case.edu/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/podata_1_17_14-11.pdf
http://www.globaldrugpolicy.org/Issues/Vol 2 Issue 2/Neurobiology of Addication and the Adolescent Brain.pdf
http://archive.samhsa.gov/data/NSDUH/2013SummNatFindDetTables/NationalFindings/NSDUHresults2013.pdf
THE DEVELOPING
ADOLESCENT BRAIN,
ITS VULNERABILITY TO
SUBSTANCE ABUSE,
AND THE BENEFIT OF
EARLY INTERVENTION
A Critical Window for Change:
The Adolescent Brain:
ADOLESCENCE IS A TIME OF GREAT DEVELOPMENT:
the brain is young, malleable, and eager to experience new
things. The teenage years are also the most crucial window
for learning. Drug addiction, however, is a learned disease,
and young brains are most susceptible.
THERE ARE 4 WAYS THAT THE ADOLESCENT
BRAIN DIFFERS FROM THE ADULT BRAIN:
The parts of the brain dedicated to judgment and decision-making
are not fully mature in adolescence, making youth much more
likely to try drugs and alcohol during their teenage years.
The developing adolescent brain can clearly lead to irrational
behavior, risk-taking, and addiction. However, because it is still
malleable, it is also possible to “unlearn” destructive tendencies.
Adolescents are less likely than adults to seek
treatment on their own. They do not realize they are
suffering from addiction and do not have the incentive to
change. This is where they need intervention.
FACT: A person’s
learning capacity will
never be greater than it
is during adolescence.
A decision your
teen makes now
can affect him
FOR LIFE.
It takes about
25 YEARS for a
brain to fully
develop
Although the brain reaches
90% of its adult size by age
6, the brain undergoes
MAJOR, DYNAMIC CHANGES
throughout adolescence.
The cerebral cortex accounts for about 75% of the entire human brain.
It is divided into four areas, called lobes, which control specific
functions. These develop and mature in order, from BACK TO FRONT.
DOPAMINE LEVELS: There is more dopamine activity in
the brain’s reward center in early adolescence than at any
other point in their life. Teens therefore go out of their
way to seek rewarding experiences, such as
experimenting with new drugs.
Adolescent Brain Development:
This Early Exposure Leads to
Learned Substance Addiction:
The rapid period of brain development in adolescence is also
the greatest window for change. Early intervention is critical for
your teen to lead a clear and sober lifestyle in the future!
HYPER-RATIONAL THINKING: The part of the brain that
is in charge of decision-making is not fully developed in
adolescence. As a result, teens will focus on the thrill or
the positive aspects of an experience, such as drug using,
without weighing its negative consequences.
PRUNING: The pruning stage of development can also
be thought of as conditioning. Choices teens make
now can affect their brains for life! If a teen does not
read during adolescence, his reading “synapses” will
be eliminated.
MYELINATION: The brain's "white matter," called
myelin, enables nerve signals to quickly communicate
with different parts of the brain. This process begins
in adolescence and is the main contributor to our
brain’s plasticity.
OCCIPITAL LOBE:
Concerned with
vision. First lobe to
fully develop.
There were just OVER
2.8 MILLION new users
of illicit drugs in 2013.
TWO OUT OF THREE
students have consumed
alcohol by the end of
high school.
54.1% WERE UNDER
18 YEARS OLD.
1.3 MILLION youth needed
treatment for substance
dependence in 2013.
ONLY 122,000 RECEIVED
TREATMENT AT A
SPECIALTY FACILITY
THE AVERAGE AGE of
first experimentation
with drugs is
13 YEARS OLD.
49% OF HIGH SCHOOL
STUDENTS have
already used an illicit
drug in their lifetime.
13
6.5X
“When substance use disorders
are identified and treated in
adolescence, especially if they are
mild or moderate, they frequently
give way to abstinence from
drugs with no further problems.”
- National Institute on Drug Abuse
“Early intervention can obviously
decrease the risk of developing
substance abuse. However, missed
opportunities to intervene may
increase the probability of using
during adolescence.”
- Dr. Deborah Simkin
ONLY 10% of 12- to 17-year-olds needing substance abuse treatment
actually receive any services.