The Nation - News from March 10, 1989

A survey of eighth- and 10th-graders shows that a vast majority have tried drinking, most don’t wear seat belts and about one in three has seriously contemplated suicide, researchers reported. The Centers for Disease Control reported the results of the National Adolescent Student Health Survey, the first such national questionnaire since the 1960s. The 1987 sampling of 11,000 students in 20 states answered questions about alcohol, drugs, violence, suicide and sex, and the results showed unhealthful habits. Thirty-four percent of the students--25% of the boys and 42% of the girls--reported that they had thought seriously about ending their lives, and 15% had gone so far as to attempt potentially fatal injuries. In the eighth grade, 51% said they had tried cigarettes and 77% had tried alcohol; by 10th grade, the numbers rose to 63% for smoking and 89% for booze.