Catching Up to the Boys, in the Good and the Bad

Experts say there is no single explanation for why more teenage girls are deciding to experiment with drugs or why some are getting into fights. However, they do note that society's expectations about girlhood have changed dramatically over the years. Annette Funicello's wholesome beach blanket antics have given way to Britney Spears's latest meltdown.

"The why of what's happening is in part a direct response to the advances that we're making as a society around gender equity," said Deborah Prothrow-Stith, a professor of public health at Harvard University. If society offers girls and boys the same opportunities, that means they're exposed to the good as well as the bad, she said.

"We really have to ask the questions, 'Why wouldn't you expect girls to behave [like boys]?' Girls and women are closing all the other gaps," Prothrow-Stith said.

Experts who work with teenage girls, particularly those in the Washington region, say more options can also equal more stress. A 2005 poll, conducted by The Post, the Kaiser Family Foundation and Harvard found that more than four in 10 local high school girls said they "frequently" experienced stress in their daily lives, compared with fewer than three in 10 nationally.

"Our lives are so crazy, and kids are looking for something when they feel" stressed, said Beverly Parker-Lewis, a clinical psychologist with the Fairfax County public schools. "Sometimes, the result is negative behavior."

Teenagers say pressure is a factor. The 18-year-old remembered being so overwhelmed by the pressure to be a perfect student that, at one point, she couldn't get out of bed. The 16-year-old talked about how both academic and peer pressure prompted her to take up drinking as an outlet for her stress.

Girls "work so hard to prove themselves all the time," said Christine Whitaker, a therapist with Metropolitan Counseling Associates in Bethesda. "Then, when the weekend comes, they blow it all out."

And teenagers are surrounded by a mix of messages. On one hand, their parents and teachers tell them not to drink, smoke or do drugs, but on the other hand, music and such television shows as "Gossip Girl" and "The Hills" showcase teens indulging in just such behavior.

According to a 2006 survey by the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) at Columbia University, girls between the ages of 12 and 17 were at equal or higher risk of substance abuse compared with boys. That same year, the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy found that the number of girls who smoke or abuse prescription drugs had surpassed that of boys. More troubling: The increase in drug usage among girls comes at a time when overall numbers for teenage drug abuse are on the decline.

Sue Foster, vice president and director of policy research and analysis at CASA, said these behaviors can be especially dangerous for girls because of the different ways in which their bodies process substances. One drink for a woman is the equivalent of two for a man. CASA researchers found that girls and women "are also likely to become addicted to alcohol, nicotine, illegal and prescription drugs and develop substance-abuse related diseases at lower levels of use and in shorter periods of time."

The 16-year-old said her vodka hangover made her realize that drinking was starting to dominate her life. It was affecting her grades and friendships. Slowly, with the help of a counselor, she began to set limits for herself. She stopped hanging around with friends who liked to drink and found a new crowd. She still drinks on weekends, but it has ceased to be a "must" in her life, she said.

A recent study, conducted by emergency medicine physicians at the Center for Trauma and Injury Prevention Research at the University of California at Irvine medical school, examined accident rates of young drivers between 2000 and 2004 and found that although boys have more accidents, young female drivers appear to be closing the gap.