Hispanic teens more likely to use drugs, study says

Hispanic teens are more likely to use illicit drugs such as marijuana, ecstasy and cocaine, compared with their African-American and Caucasian counterparts, according to a new study.

The study was released this month by the Partnership at Drug Freeorganization.

It says that 54% of Hispanic teens reported having used an illicit drug, followed by African-American teens at 45%. Caucasians came third at 43%.

Why? There is no definitive answer, but there are contributing factors involved, according to William Raikes, assistant director of consumer research at The Partnership at Drugfree.org.

A larger percentage -- 62% of Hispanic teens -- have been offered drugs such as ecstasy, crack/cocaine, heroin and methamphetamine at least once, compared with 53% of Caucasian teens and 46% of African-Americans. Read the full article here.