Alcohol Facts:

• Fact: Alcoholism is one of the most serious public health problems in the US today. Among the 18.3 million adult "heavier drinkers," 12.1 million have one or more symptoms of alcoholism, an increase of 8.2 percent since 1980.
• Fact: One out of three American adults - 56 million Americans - says that alcohol abuse has brought trouble to his or her family.

Alcohol Myths:

• Myth: I can drink and still be in control.
• Fact: Drinking impairs your judgment, which increases the likelihood that you will do something you will later regret such as having unprotected sex, being involved in date rape, damaging property, or being victimized by others.

Drug Facts:

• Fact: When users snort or inject cocaine or smoke crack, they are almost always ingesting something else besides the drug.
• Fact: The purity of powdered cocaine obtained by most user's ranges widely from 30 to 95 percent, since most is "cut" with other substances by the seller to increase profits. These fillers include sugars, inexpensive stimulants, anesthetics, and other drugs.
• Fact: The impurities increase the hazards of taking already risky drugs, because users have no way of knowing how much cocaine they are giving themselves.

Drug Myths:

• Myth: Helpful drugs are those that are legal, while harmful drugs are illegal.
• Fact: It does not matter whether a drug is legal or illegal, all drugs can be abused. Even if a federally regulated drug is considered "safe", misuse and abuse of this drug can still have harmful effects. At times, legal drugs have been so harmful that treatment for drug abuse is needed.
• Myth: Marijuana is not bad for you.
• Fact: Marijuana is in fact bad for you. This powerful drug can cause cancer and numerous other health complications putting the user at risk for disease. Anyone who uses this drug is at risk for dependence. Other negative effects of this drug include lack of coordination, memory problems and poor concentration.
• Myth: Driving is not affected by the influence of drugs.
• Fact: Drugs negatively affect driving ability. Many drugs impair coordination, weaken muscles, affect attention span and judgment, as well as blur your vision. Distortion of the area around you is also another side effect, one that is especially dangerous for drivers. Statistics state that a driver with an alcohol concentration above 0.05 faces the same risks as someone under the influence of cannabis or an amphetamine based substance.

Tobacco Facts:

• Fact: Tobacco smoke causes yellow, stained teeth and bad breath.
• Fact: Smoking cigarettes makes your hair, clothes and breath stink really bad.

Tobacco Myths:

• Myth: Secondhand smoke is harmless.
• Fact: Exposure to secondhand smoke causes disease and death in nonsmokers. Children are particularly susceptible to its effects. It is a cause of cancer, heart disease and stroke.
• Myth: Secondhand smoke doesn't harm children. 
• Fact: In children, secondhand smoke causes lower respiratory tract infections (bronchitis and pneumonia), with 5-10% of cases requiring hospitalization. 
• Exposed to secondhand smoke, children have an increased risk of acute and chronic middle ear infections, and are a risk factor for new cases of asthma.
• Myth: Secondhand smoke doesn't harm employees.
• Fact: Looking at her chest x-ray, Colleen Farris' doctors thought she was a smoker. The Tulsa waitress for 20 years had spots on her lung and nicotine levels 2.5 times higher than employees in smoke-free workplaces.