Dr. Thomas McLellan, Executive Director of the Treatment Research Institute, notes that 13 is the age when most children begin to experiment with alcohol and other drugs. Ten thousand children turn 13 every day. During their most impressionable years, they will see drug and alcohol use idealized in the advertising they consume, the movies they watch, the music they enjoy. They will also have “friends” offer them a chemically induced escape that is "cool."

Addiction plays a huge role in our society.

• 23.2 million people struggle with addictions
• Drug addiction or alcoholism affects one in three American families
• Only 10 percent of these people are getting help – partly due to denial and the stigma associated with addiction
• Drugs and alcohol are involved in half of all divorces and separations
• Drugs and alcohol are implicated in half of all hospitalizations
• 65 percent of children in the foster care system are there because of alcohol/drug abuse by parents
• 87 percent of people in jail are there because of drug and alcohol offenses

But it is the human cost in lives and families torn apart that is the hidden crime. Cynthia Moreno Tuohy, executive director for The Association of Addiction Professionals (NAADAC) says “We’re losing America. We’re losing America because we’re not paying attention to what’s really happening to our families and our individuals."

See America's Drug Abuse Profile for a comprehensive summary of drug use in America.