Teenagers expect the adults in their lives to have the answers to why specific drugs are dangerous, even though they may spend a lot of time and energy testing our authority. It’s important to be informed and personally confident in our own value judgments. It’s also important to be able to share information quickly; usually teens don’t listen to long explanations.

Here’s what the American Council for Drug Education has to say. If you agree, it will take you 15 seconds to share the information with your adolescent.

 Alcohol is the most widely used and socially costly drug of abuse, responsible for much crime and violence. Alcohol-related accidents are the leading killer of Americans ages 15 to 24, and alcohol is a major cause of birth defects.

Marijuana is far more potent today than the pot of the past and its harmful effects are longer lasting. Moderate doses induce a sense of well-being and a state of relaxation that encourages fantasies, makes users highly suggestible and distorts perceptions. At stronger doses, reactions as extreme as paranoia and hallucinations can occur.

Tobacco is a powerfully addictive substance and is the leading cause of preventable premature death in the United States. Heart disease, cancer, strokes and respiratory disease are common results of tobacco use.

Inhalants produce a quick high, are the easiest to get and are the most dangerous. Breathing fumes of chemical products can cause permanent brain damage or death the 60th time or the first time because they were never meant to be taken into the human body.

 Methamphetamine users often become agitated and feel “wired.” Nerve sensations feel like biting bugs, so users may scratch until they bleed. They feel compelled to repeat meaningless tasks. They don’t sleep, or eat, for extended periods of time. Their behavior becomes unpredictable. They may be friendly and calm one moment and then turn paranoid and violent.

 Nearly three out of four substance abusers hold jobs. They are five times more likely than other workers to injure themselves or co-workers and cause 40 percent of all industrial fatalities. They raise costs and reduce profits. They can cost you your job or your life.

The Parenting Resource Center is a partner in the Freeborn County Partners in Prevention Coalition. The mission of the Freeborn County Partners in Prevention Coalition is reducing alcohol, tobacco and other drug use among youth in Freeborn County.

If you would like more alcohol, tobacco and drug prevention information for yourself and the teens in your family, call the free Parent WarmLine at (888) 584-2204.

The Parent WarmLine is a great place to call for emotional support and problem-solving assistance. We’ll be glad to talk with you about how to increase protective factors and decrease risk factors in your teen’s life. Parenting is hard work and you deserve support.

Ask for the Freeborn County Check List for Teenage Behavior or the CD Hormones and Wheels by Love and Logic’s Jim Fay. Check out www.familiesandcommunities org. Communicating effectively with our teenagers can certainly be challenging; it can also be very rewarding.

MaryAnn is the executive director of the Parenting Resource Center in Austin.