HealthDay News reported Dec. 9 that researchers asked about 4,000 7th- through 12th-graders to rate their parents' tolerance toward marijuana on a five-point scale. For every degree of tolerance, frequency of youth marijuana use increased 33 percent; for every degree that students believed their parents were monitoring their behavior (a separate question), marijuana use declined 10 percent.

"Much of the previous research in this area shows that adolescents make their decisions about drugs based on influence from their friends," said lead author Stephen Bahr. "But those studies neglect the notion we found here, that some of the family characteristics help determine who teens associated with. We also found that some steps taken by parents had a direct effect on lowering drug abuse, even in the face of peer influences."

Siblings also have a strong influence on drug behavior, the study found; having an older brother or sister who used marijuana raises the likelihood that the younger sibling will use by 58 percent.

The study was published Oct. 15, 2005 in the online version of the Journal of Primary Prevention.

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