by 
The Curious Bag
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According to the Partnership for a Drug-Free America, one out of every five U.S. teenagers has abused some type of prescription medication to either self-medicate themselves or just to get high. This type of abuse presents many dangers for teens.
Easy Accessibility
Teens can easily get prescription drugs from their own home medicine cabinet, or from their friends.
Gateway
Prescription drugs can be considered "gateway drugs," meaning their abuse often leads to teens indulging in harder or illegal street drugs like heroin and cocaine.
Pharming
Teens engage in a practice called "pharming" where they ransack the medicine cabinet and mix together a sample of whatever is available to get high.
Parents Are Unaware
Many parents don't realize the potential for their kids to abuse drugs that are available at home. According to Medscape.com, only 24 percent of parents talk to teens about prescription drug abuse.
Lack of Stigma
Many teens think that because a doctor prescribed the drugs that they're not as dangerous as ones they would buy on the street.
Health Dangers
Abusing these medicines or using drugs that aren't prescribed for them puts teens at risk for such health problems as vomiting, seizures, mood swings, addiction, overdose and even death.
Source:
ProjectGHB.org: Prescription/OTC drugs
DARE.com: Keeping Kids Drug Free
Medscape.com: Stopping Prescription Drug Abuse
More Information:
DARE.org: The Issue: The New Drug Abuse
DrugFree.org: Prescription Drug Abuse: A Serious Problem
KidsHealth.org: What Are the Dangers of Abusing Medications?
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