BATON ROUGE — A new study analyzing nearly 25 years of U.S. Poison Center data reveals a surprising age shift in intentional substance exposures at schools.

Researchers at Nationwide Children's Hospital examined over 122,000 cases involving students ages 6 to 18 between 2000 and 2024. During that period, intentional exposure rates soared by more than 287% among elementary school students and nearly 112% among middle schoolers, while rates among high schoolers dropped by over 4%.

The substances involved varied sharply by age group. Younger children were primarily exposed to cosmetics, personal care products, art supplies, plants, and small toys. High schoolers were more likely to use analgesics, stimulants, and street drugs—and were significantly more likely to suffer serious medical outcomes.

Study co-author Dr. Hannah Hays urges parents to lock up both prescription and over-the-counter medications at home, start early, nonjudgmental conversations about substance use and mental health, and partner with schools to help address the growing issue.