Washington, D.C., tops for adult drinking

WASHINGTON, Aug. 1 (UPI) -- The District of Columbia tops the nation for alcohol dependence or abuse for adults age 26 and older at 8.1 percent, U.S. health officials say.

However, a state-by-state report by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration also finds the District of Columbia had the lowest rate among minors ages 12-17 at 3 percent.

States can vary widely when it comes to substance abuse. For example, among those age 12 and older, Iowa had a 5.3 percent illicit drug use rate versus Alaska at 13.5 percent yet Iowa also was among the Top 10 states with the highest levels of people age 12 and older participating in binge drinking at 28.6 percent.

Utah had the lowest rate of current marijuana use at 3.6 percent, while Alaska had the highest rate at 11.5 percent, the report says.

The states that had the highest rates of illicit drug use of those age 12 or older were also the Top 10 states for marijuana use: Alaska, Colorado, District of Columbia, Hawaii, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Oregon, Rhode Island and Vermont.

Rhode Island had the nation's highest rate of adults age 18 or older experiencing serious mental illness in the past year at 7.2 percent, while Hawaii and South Dakota shared the lowest rate at 3.5 percent.

The report is based on data from the 2008 and 2009 National Surveys on Drug Use and Health drawn from interviews with 137,436 people.