Preventing Youth Use
Substance use prevention begins with awareness, connection, and consistent support. LAFY helps families understand the risks of youth alcohol, marijuana, nicotine, vaping, and prescription drug misuse while encouraging conversations that build trust, set clear expectations, and support healthy choices.
Parents and caregivers are one of the strongest protective factors in a young person’s life. By staying informed and talking early and often, families can help youth navigate pressure, understand risks, and make decisions that protect their health and future.
Through our partnership with Parent Up, families have access to trusted prevention resources, practical tools, and conversation guides designed to help parents and caregivers talk with youth about substance use. Parent Up is a regional prevention campaign that empowers adults to stay informed, set healthy boundaries, and support young people in making safe, healthy decisions.
Learn more about substances below, and visit Parent Up for additional tools and resources for parents and caregivers.
Care
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Connect
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Communication
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Careful Attention
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Care ✳︎ Connect ✳︎ Communication ✳︎ Careful Attention ✳︎
Why Substance Use Prevention?
Preventing youth substance use is not simply about telling young people that drugs are bad. It is about understanding how the brain develops and giving young people the time, support, and skills they need to reach adulthood as healthy as possible.
The brain continues developing and maturing into a person’s mid-to-late twenties. During adolescence, the brain is strengthening connections that support learning, emotional regulation, judgment, planning, and decision-making. At the same time, it can also make immediate rewards or social acceptance feel more important than possible long-term consequences.
Delaying use matters. Each additional period of healthy brain development gives young people more time to strengthen decision-making skills, develop healthy coping strategies, build supportive relationships, and prepare for adult responsibilities without the added influence of substances.
Why Substance Use Prevention?
Preventing youth substance use is not simply about telling young people that drugs are bad. It is about understanding how the brain develops and giving young people the time, support, and skills they need to reach adulthood as healthy as possible.
The brain continues developing and maturing into a person’s mid-to-late twenties. During adolescence, the brain is strengthening connections that support learning, emotional regulation, judgment, planning, and decision-making. At the same time, it can also make immediate rewards or social acceptance feel more important than possible long-term consequences.
Delaying use matters. Each additional period of healthy brain development gives young people more time to strengthen decision-making skills, develop healthy coping strategies, build supportive relationships, and prepare for adult responsibilities without the added influence of substances.
LAFY’s Approach to Prevention
Prevention is not about expecting young people to make every decision alone. It is about creating a community where healthy choices are supported by families, schools, organizations, policies, relationships, and opportunities.
Our goal is to help young people delay substance use, understand how substances can affect their developing brains, build healthy coping skills, and know where to turn when they need support.
Prevention gives young people more than a warning. It gives them time, connection, skills, and support during one of the most important periods of their development.
Explore the resources below to learn more about different substances and ways adults can support healthy development.
Preventing Youth Substance Use