Local authorities want parents to remember the war on drugs starts at home.

Each day, nearly 2,500 teens use prescription drugs to get high for the first time. Studies show that a majority of abused prescription drugs are obtained from family and friends, including the home medicine cabinet.

Several local agencies have teamed up to keep prescription drugs out of the wrong hands.

Family Connection and Dawson Against Substance Abuse, along with the Dawson County Sheriff's Office and DEA, will have a prescription drug take back day from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday at Kroger in Dawsonville.

The service is free and anonymous, no questions asked.

"Getting those pills destroyed, instead of leaving them in your house, makes you less likely to be a victim of someone breaking into your house to steal drugs from your medicine cabinet," said sheriff's Capt. Tony Wooten.

The collected pills are then turned over to the federal Drug Enforcement Administration, which destroys them.

Several pounds of prescription pills were collected during the group's last take-back event.

The prescription drug take-back event allows the public to safely dispose of expired, unused and unwanted prescription drugs or over-the-counter medications.

According to SafeKids of Georgia, more than 2 million unintentional poison exposures from prescription pills are reported in the U.S. each year. For more information, call (706) 265-1981.