Executive Summary
Lynn Wallisch, M.A.
Copyright
In spring 1993, the Texas Commission on Alcohol and Drug Abuse (TCADA) conducted a telephone survey of substance use among 6,482 Texas adults randomly selected from households with telephones. The survey asked respondents about use of various substances as well as personal problems associated with drug use and substance treatment experiences and needs.
The survey sample was representative of the state¹s population and was broken down by 11 geographic regions. The sample included 3,131 males and 3,351 females. The weighted sample included 63 percent Whites, 11 percent African Americans, 23 percent Hispanics, and less than 4 percent from other racial/ethnic groups.
Prevalence of Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Drugs
Table 1 shown below shows estimates of the prevalence and recency of use of all substances for Texas adults. Lifetime estimates indicate the percentage and number of adults who had ever tried a substance at least once and represent overall exposure. Past-month estimates measure active substance users in the population, while past-year estimates indicate the percentage of the population who had used a substance within the past year, including the past month. Table 2 is a more comprehensive representation of substance use throughout the state, broken down by age.
| Table 1. Prevalence of Licit and Illicit Substance Use Texas Adults 1993 |
|
Lifetime |
Past Year |
Past Month |
|
Percent |
Number of
Users |
Percent |
Number of
Users |
Percent |
Number of
Users |
| Licit Substances |
| Alcohol |
88.9% |
11,380,000 |
27.0% |
8,570,000 |
43.7% |
5,592,000 |
| Tobacco |
70.7% |
9,045,000 |
27.0% |
3,458,000 |
23.2% |
2,966,000 |
| Inhalants |
4.9% |
633,000 |
* |
25,000 |
* |
19,000 |
| Illicit Substances |
| Any Illicit Drug |
32.3% |
4,135,000 |
5.6% |
719,000 |
2.4% |
308,000 |
| Marijuana |
29.1% |
3,729,000 |
4.2% |
539,000 |
1.7% |
219,000 |
| Uppers |
10.4% |
1,332,000 |
1.0% |
131,000 |
* |
25,000 |
| Cocaine |
9.8% |
1,257,000 |
1.1% |
135,000 |
* |
56,000 |
| Crack |
1.8% |
224,000 |
* |
32,000 |
* |
10,000 |
| Psychedelics |
8.8% |
1,125,000 |
1.1% |
138,000 |
* |
56,000 |
| Downers |
5.6% |
723,000 |
0.6% |
80,000 |
* |
26,000 |
| Heroin |
0.7% |
90,000 |
* |
11,000 |
* |
0 |
| Other Opiates |
1.9% |
243,000 |
* |
22,000 |
* |
3,000 |
* Less than 0.5%.
Note: Numbers rounded to nearest thousand. |
Table 2. Prevalence and Recency of Substance Use by Age
All Texas Adults 1993 |
|
Ever Used |
Past Month |
Past Year
(Not Past Month) |
Not Past Year |
Never Used |
| Tobacco (All) |
70.7% |
23.2% |
3.8% |
43.6% |
29.3% |
| Adults 18-24 |
63.1% |
25.9% |
8.3% |
28.8% |
36.9% |
| Adults 25-34 |
70.5% |
23.8% |
5.6% |
41.0% |
29.5% |
| Adults 35 & Older |
72.6% |
22.3% |
2.1% |
48.2% |
27.4% |
| Alcohol (All) |
88.9% |
43.7% |
23.3% |
22.0% |
11.1% |
| Adults 18-24 |
89.0% |
49.8% |
28.2% |
11.1% |
11.0% |
| Adults 25-34 |
92.4% |
50.4% |
26.0% |
16.0% |
7.6% |
| Adults 35 & Older |
87.5% |
39.7% |
21.0% |
26.8% |
12.5% |
| Marijuana (All) |
29.1% |
1.7% |
2.5% |
24.9% |
70.9% |
| Adults 18-24 |
33.9% |
5.6% |
7.1% |
21.3% |
66.1% |
| Adults 25-34 |
46.4% |
2.6% |
3.6% |
40.2% |
53.6% |
| Adults 35 & Older |
21.4% |
** |
0.9% |
20.1% |
78.6% |
| Inhalants (All) |
4.9% |
** |
** |
4.7% |
95.1% |
| Adults 18-24 |
9.7% |
** |
** |
9.2% |
90.3% |
| Adults 25-34 |
9.4% |
** |
** |
9.3% |
90.6% |
| Adults 35 & Older |
2.1% |
** |
** |
2.0% |
97.9% |
| Cocaine (All) |
9.8% |
** |
0.6% |
8.8% |
90.2% |
| Adults 18-24 |
10.5% |
0.9% |
1.8% |
7.8% |
89.5% |
| Adults 25-34 |
19.3% |
1.3% |
1.0% |
17.0% |
80.7% |
| Adults 35 & Older |
6.1% |
** |
** |
5.9% |
93.9% |
| Crack (All) |
1.8% |
** |
** |
1.5% |
98.2% |
| Adults 18-24 |
2.2% |
** |
** |
1.9% |
97.8% |
| Adults 25-34 |
4.5% |
** |
** |
3.8% |
95.5% |
| Adults 35 & Older |
0.6% |
** |
** |
0.5% |
99.4% |
| Cocaine or Crack (All) |
9.9% |
** |
0.7% |
8.8% |
90.1% |
| Adults 18-24 |
10.8% |
0.9% |
1.9% |
8.0% |
89.2% |
| Adults 25-34 |
19.4% |
1.3% |
1.2% |
16.9% |
80.6% |
| Adults 35 & Older |
6.1% |
** |
** |
5.9% |
93.9% |
| Uppers (All) |
10.4% |
** |
0.8% |
9.4% |
89.6% |
| Adults 18-24 |
10.1% |
0.6% |
2.3% |
7.2% |
89.9% |
| Adults 25-34 |
17.5% |
** |
0.9% |
16.5% |
82.5% |
| Adults 35 & Older |
7.8% |
** |
** |
7.2% |
92.2% |
| Downers (All) |
5.6% |
** |
** |
5.0% |
94.4% |
| Adults 18-24 |
5.7% |
** |
1.4% |
4.0% |
94.3% |
| Adults 25-34 |
9.3% |
0.6% |
** |
8.5% |
90.7% |
| Adults 35 & Older |
4.3% |
** |
** |
4.0% |
95.7% |
| Heroin (All) |
0.7% |
** |
** |
0.6% |
99.3% |
| Adults 18-24 |
0.7% |
** |
** |
** |
99.3% |
| Adults 25-34 |
** |
** |
** |
** |
99.5% |
| Adults 35 & Older |
0.8% |
** |
** |
0.7% |
99.2% |
| Other Opiates (All) |
1.9% |
** |
** |
1.7% |
98.1% |
| Adults 18-24 |
2.6% |
** |
0.6% |
2.0% |
97.4% |
| Adults 25-34 |
3.0% |
** |
** |
2.8% |
97.0% |
| Adults 35 & Older |
1.3% |
** |
** |
1.3% |
98.7% |
| Psychedelics (All) |
8.8% |
** |
0.6% |
7.7% |
91.2% |
| Adults 18-24 |
14.5% |
1.7% |
2.9% |
9.9% |
85.5% |
| Adults 25-34 |
13.9% |
0.5% |
0.6% |
12.8% |
86.1% |
| Adults 35 & Older |
5.5% |
** |
** |
5.3% |
94.5% |
| Any Illicit Drug (All) |
32.3% |
2.4% |
3.2% |
26.7% |
67.7% |
| Adults 18-24 |
38.4% |
7.0% |
9.0% |
22.4% |
61.6% |
| Adults 25-34 |
50.2% |
3.7% |
4.0% |
42.4% |
49.8% |
| Adults 35 & Older |
24.1% |
0.8% |
1.5% |
21.8% |
75.9% |
**Less than 0.5%.
Maximum 95% confidence limit for all adults = ±1.6%.
Maximum 95% confidence limit for age category = ±3.9%. |
Alcohol
- 89 percent or over 11 million Texas adults had drunk alcohol at some time in their lives.
- 67 percent of adults had drunk alcohol within the past year.
- 44 percent of the adult population had drunk alcohol at least once during the past 30 days.
- 5 percent of Texas adults are heavy drinkers.
Tobacco
- 71 percent or 9 million Texans have used tobacco during their lifetimes, but less than one-third of them are current smokers.
Inhalants
- Although inhalants are easily available and legal, relatively few adult Texans have used them to get high.
- 5 percent of adults or slightly over 600,000 individuals had ever used inhalants.
Illicit Drugs
- In 1993 about one-third of Texas adults, or slightly over four million individuals, reported having tried at least one illicit drug in their lifetimes, but most of this use did not continue.
- 6 percent of Texas adults used illicit drugs during the past year and 2.5 percent are current users.
Marijuana
- Some 29 percent of Texas adults had tried marijuana in their lifetimes, and almost 2 percent are current users.
Stimulants
- 10 percent of adult Texans had used uppers for nonmedical purposes at some time during their lives, and 1 percent had used them during the past year.
Cocaine
- 10 percent of adults had used powder cocaine in their lifetimes, and 1 percent within the past year.
- 2 percent of adults had tried crack, but fewer than 0.5 percent had used it in the past year.
Psychedelics or Hallucinogens
- 9 percent of all Texas adults had tried psychedelics at some time in their lives, but only 1 percent within the past year.
Sedatives, Tranquilizers and Barbiturates
- 6 percent of adult Texans had used downers in their lifetimes, and slightly under 1 percent within the past year.
Heroin and Other Opiates
- 2 percent had used heroin and other opiates such as Percodan, Demerol, codeine, and morphine for nonmedical purposes during their lifetimes, but had rarely used these drugs within the past year.
Characteristics of Substance Users
Substance use varied by age, gender, race/ethnicity, income, and region.
Age and Gender
- Rates of lifetime alcohol use were similar for all age categories, but rates of current use were significantly lower for adults over age 35.
- Individuals ages 25-34, the generation born since the 1960s, had higher lifetime use for drugs and alcohol than younger adults; this suggests the previous generation of drug users is now aging, while drug use among the most recent generation is not as high.
- For all ages, men reported a higher prevalence of substance use than women.
Race
- Whites were the most likely to have used alcohol and most other drugs except crack.
- African Americans were the most likely to have used crack.
- Hispanics had the lowest use of most drugs.
- There was no significant difference between the groups for inhalants, heroin, and other opiates.
| Table 3. Lifetime and Current Prevalence of Substance Use by Race/Ethnicity |
|
Percent Ever Used |
Percent Used Past Month |
| Whites |
African
Americans |
Hispanics |
Whites |
African
Americans |
Hispanics |
| Tobacco |
75% |
66% |
63% |
23% |
27% |
21% |
| Alcohol |
92% |
85% |
83% |
46% |
38% |
40% |
| Marijuana |
33% |
29% |
22% |
2% |
2% |
2% |
| Inhalants |
6% |
3% |
5% |
* |
* |
* |
| Cocaine |
12% |
7% |
6% |
1% |
* |
* |
| Crack |
2% |
3% |
1% |
* |
* |
* |
| Uppers |
13% |
7% |
6% |
* |
* |
* |
| Downers |
7% |
4% |
3% |
* |
* |
* |
| Heroin |
1% |
1% |
1% |
* |
* |
* |
| Other Opiates |
2% |
2% |
1% |
* |
* |
* |
| Psychedelics |
12% |
3% |
5% |
1% |
* |
* |
| Any Illicit Drug |
36% |
31% |
25% |
2% |
3% |
2% |
| *Less than 0.5%.; Note: Numbers rounded to the nearest percent. |
Income
- For adults older than 25, the lowest income adults were the least likely to have used substances in their lifetimes.
- Among the younger adults, those with the lowest incomes were the most likely to have ever used illicit drugs, especially marijuana, inhalants, cocaine, and crack.
Region of the State
- For alcohol and for most of the illicit drugs except heroin, the regions of highest usage were the Metroplex and Gulf Coast, and for alcohol and marijuana only, Central Texas.
- The regions of lowest use were Lower South Texas for almost all substances and, for illicit drugs, Upper East and Northwest Texas.
Survey Regions of Texas
| Table 4. Lifetime Prevalence of Substance Use by Region |
|
High Plains |
Northwest |
Metroplex |
Upper East |
Southeast |
Gulf Coast |
| Tobacco |
72% |
69% |
74% |
66% |
71% |
72% |
| Alcohol |
84% |
88% |
92% |
85% |
86% |
91% |
| Marijuana |
26% |
22% |
33% |
22% |
25% |
34% |
| Inhalants |
5% |
3% |
5% |
3% |
4% |
6% |
| Cocaine |
6% |
4% |
13% |
5% |
7% |
12% |
| Crack |
1% |
* |
2% |
1% |
2% |
3% |
| Uppers |
10% |
9% |
13% |
9% |
13% |
12% |
| Downers |
2% |
3% |
8% |
4% |
7% |
8% |
| Heroin |
1% |
* |
1% |
1% |
2% |
1% |
| Other Opiates |
1% |
1% |
2% |
1% |
3% |
3% |
| Psychedelics |
7% |
4% |
12% |
4% |
6% |
11% |
| Any Illicit Drug |
29% |
25% |
37% |
23% |
30% |
37% |
|
Central |
Lower South |
West |
Upper Rio Grande |
Upper South |
Statewide |
| Tobacco |
72% |
66% |
69% |
67% |
67% |
71% |
| Alcohol |
90% |
82% |
89% |
86% |
90% |
89% |
| Marijuana |
30% |
19% |
24% |
26% |
29% |
29% |
| Inhalants |
4% |
4% |
2% |
4% |
5% |
5% |
| Cocaine |
9% |
7% |
5% |
8% |
9% |
10% |
| Crack |
1% |
1% |
* |
1% |
1% |
2% |
| Uppers |
10% |
8% |
10% |
10% |
7% |
10% |
| Downers |
4% |
2% |
5% |
5% |
4% |
6% |
| Heroin |
* |
1% |
1% |
1% |
* |
1% |
| Other Opiates |
2% |
1% |
2% |
* |
1% |
2% |
| Psychedelics |
8% |
4% |
5% |
5% |
9% |
9% |
| Any Illicit Drug |
33% |
22% |
28% |
31% |
32% |
32% |
| * Less than 0.5%.; Note: Numbers rounded to the nearest percent. |
Substance Use Trends in Texas
Texas adults were previously surveyed about their substance use in 1988. In comparing the 1988 survey with this study, the following trends were noted:
- Between 1988 and 1993, lifetime use of alcohol, tobacco and most illicit drugs remained relatively stable or showed a modest increase.
- Lifetime use of crack tripled from 0.6 percent in 1988 to 1.8 percent in 1993.
- Between 1988 and 1993, past-year illicit drug use declined from 7 percent to 5.6 percent.
- For adults younger than 25, past-year use of cocaine or crack was cut in half, from 6.3 percent to 2.8 percent.
- Past-year use of tobacco and inhalants declined slightly although tobacco use increased among the youngest adults.
- Alcohol use remained essentially stable.
Comparing Texas with the U.S.
- Lifetime use of tobacco, marijuana, and cocaine/crack was lower in Texas than in the country as a whole, especially for adults under age 35.
- Lifetime use of alcohol, stimulants, downers, psychedelics, opiates, and inhalants was similar for Texas and the rest of the nation.
- Past-year substance use was lower in Texas than in the country as a whole.
Table 5. Comparison of Past-Year Prevalence of Substance Use,
Texas and National |
|
USA - 1988 |
USA - 1993 |
Texas - 1988 |
Texas - 1993 |
| Ages 18-24* |
| Tobacco** |
45% |
38% |
30% |
34% |
| Alcohol |
82% |
79% |
80% |
78% |
| Marijuana |
28% |
23% |
15% |
13% |
| Cocaine or Crack |
12% |
5% |
6% |
3% |
| Psychotherapeutics*** |
11% |
7% |
5% |
4% |
| Psychedelics |
6% |
5% |
5% |
5% |
| Inhalants |
4% |
3% |
2% |
1% |
| Ages 25-34 |
| Tobacco |
43% |
35% |
34% |
29% |
| Alcohol |
81% |
81% |
80% |
76% |
| Marijuana |
18% |
14% |
10% |
6% |
| Cocaine or Crack |
8% |
4% |
4% |
3% |
| Psychotherapeutics |
10% |
6% |
3% |
2% |
| Psychedelics |
2% |
1% |
2% |
1% |
| Inhalants |
1% |
1% |
1% |
0% |
| Ages 35+ |
| Tobacco |
30% |
27% |
28% |
24% |
| Alcohol |
64% |
65% |
59% |
61% |
| Marijuana |
3% |
4% |
2% |
1% |
| Cocaine or Crack |
1% |
1% |
1% |
0% |
| Psychotherapeutics |
3% |
3% |
1% |
1% |
| Psychedelics |
0% |
0% |
0% |
0% |
| Inhalants |
0% |
0% |
0% |
0% |
National data are from Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration,
Office of Applied Studies, 1993 National Survey on Drug Abuse.
All numbers are rounded to the nearest percent.
* In national survey, age groups reported are 18-25, 26-34, and 35+.
** In national survey, category is "cigarettes."
***This category includes uppers, downers and opiates other than heroin. |
Problems Associated with Alcohol and Drug Use
Respondents were asked about nine problems or symptoms they may have experienced with different substances. If they experienced three or more of the problems or symptoms, they were considered to be substance dependent; if they experienced one or two of the problems, they were considered to be substance abusers.
- 6 percent of adult Texans were dependent on alcohol and almost 12 percent were alcohol abusers.
- 3 percent of Texas adults had experienced one or more drug-related problems; 1 percent were drug dependent and another 2 percent were drug abusers.
- Males had two to three times the rate of substance dependence and abuse than females.
- Overall rates of substance problems were similar among Whites, African Americans, and Hispanics.
- 30 percent of adults younger than 35 had one or more problems with alcohol or drugs, compared to about 12 percent of adults older than 35.
- Substance problems, especially alcohol problems, were reported most often by people in the higher income categories and least often by those with incomes below $10,000.
- High school dropouts were most likely to be dependent on alcohol or drugs.
- The Upper South and Metroplex regions had the largest proportion of adults who were dependent on alcohol.
- The High Plains region, which reported only an intermediate amount of drug and alcohol problems overall, had the highest percentage of adults who were drug dependent.
- Never married and divorced or separated adults were significantly more likely than currently married or widowed individuals to have substance problems.
- Adults living in the suburbs had the highest rates of substance problems while people in rural areas had the lowest rates.
Conclusions
- In 1993, 18 percent of Texas adults reported having experienced one or more problems with alcohol use during the past year, and 3 percent reported problems with drug use.
- 2.4 million Texas adults have had one or more substance problems in the past year. About 800,000 could be considered substance dependent.
- TCADA estimates that in 1993 there were over 120,000 Texas adults who had substance problems, were motivated for treatment, but were financially unable to pay for the treatment they needed.
- The majority of Texas adults who had been in treatment were successful in decreasing their alcohol and/or drug use.
- Adults who had substance problems also were more likely to have gambling or mental health problems.