According to a recent study published in the journal Clinical Toxicology, cases reported to U.S. Poison Control Centers involving children ages 12 to 18 increased by 54% from 2000 to 2015. Overdoses on benzodiazepines, commonly prescribed anxiety medications, have particularly increased at a dramatic rate.
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Researchers examined 296,838 cases of benzodiazepine exposure in children under the age of 18 using information from the National Poison Data System. They found that the rate of exposure in adolescents increased from 17.7 exposures per 100,000 children in 2000 to 27.3 exposures per 100,000 children in 2014. Nearly half of the reported exposures in 2015 were due to intentional abuse or misuse, or attempted suicide.
Study author Diane Calello explained, “While benzodiazepine overdose by itself is typically not life-threatening, the findings of this study show an increase in teens taking one or more additional substances, which increases the severity of the effects, including death or life-threatening symptoms that can affect future health.”
Every year, around 70,000 children are admitted to emergency rooms across the country due to medication overdoses. “Our study group found that the increasing rate of reported benzodiazepine exposures appear to reflect the increasing rate of benzodiazepine prescriptions that have been reported across the United States over the past decade,” Calello said. “Medical providers should be aware of the increased prevalence of benzodiazepine exposures to help limit unnecessary prescribing. Parents and caregivers must be counseled on the proper use, storage and disposal of these high-risk medications.”
From 1996 to 2013, prescriptions for benzodiazepine anxiety drugs including Valium, Ativan and Xanax tripled, and the rate of overdose increased by more than 500% Benzodiazepines are highly addictive and especially dangerous when taken long term or combined with opioid drugs or alcohol.