Drug News

ALCOHOL – USA
Heavy Drinking Forces Move to Poor Neighborhoods – Join Together

Past studies have asked why poor neighborhoods seem to produce problem drinkers, but new research concludes that heavy drinking often can force a move into disadvantaged areas.

ALCOHOL – USA
Binge Drinking Risks Include Poor Diet – Join Together

A recent study found that male binge drinkers tend to decrease their intake of essential fatty acids as they increase their alcohol consumption, compounding their health risks

DRUGS – USA
Prescription Monitoring Programs Help Keep Drug Addicts and Black Market Dealers at Bay – DOT Med

A few states, including Florida have yet to take steps to monitor pain medications like Vicodin and OxyContin -luring black market dealers and addicts into these states in droves.

METH – USA
Fears over ‘meth’ drug in cold remedies – The Telegraph

Large packs of common cold and flu remedies will be banned because a chemical in them can be used to make the illegal street drug crystal meth, or methamphetamine, it was announced today.

METH – UK
Cold medicine sales restricted on meth fears – Reuter

The sale of some cold remedies will be restricted to one small pack per customer to prevent gangs making the crack-like drug, crystal meth.

METH – USA
Meth labs down, importing up – Fox News

Statewide, meth lab busts are down 80%.  The decrease began in 2004, when Oklahoma passed a law controlling one of its main ingredients, pseudoephedrine.

COCAINE – USA
Cocaine Use Related to Level of Education Achieved – NewsWise

The decreased use of cocaine in the United States over the last 20 years mostly occurred among the highly educated, while cocaine use among non-high school graduates remained constant.

Drugs – Micronesia
September is Alcohol, Drug Addiction Recovery Month – Saipan Tribune

The Saipan Mayor’s Office will observe in September the National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month and its proclamation will be held today, Aug. 30, 2pm at the Saipan Mayor’s Office conference room in San Antonio.

DRUGS – UK
Huge rise in Scottish drug deaths – BBC News

The General Register Office for Scotland (Gros) said there were 421 drug-related deaths last year, 85 more than in 2005, representing a 25% rise.
 

METH – USA
Experts raise alarm over ampethamine-type stimulant abuse – Earth Times

Anti-narcotics experts raised the alarm on Wednesday over rising abuse of amphetamine-type stimulants (ATSes) in East and South-East Asia and called for closer international cooperation to solve the growing menace.

ALCOHOL – USA
Heavy Drinking Raises Blood Pressure In Older Men Regardless Of “Good” Cholesterol – Medical News Today

A large new Japanese study suggests that middle aged men who drink heavily could see their blood pressure rise, regardless of whether their levels of “good” cholesterol also go up.

METH – USA
Neighbors and deputies team up to fight meth in Tucson – KOVA

Residents are teaming up with Pima County and its sheriff’s deputies to make the Flowing Wells neighborhood meth free.

METH – USA
Meth survey shows disturbing trend – KPAX TV News

A new national survey shows that methamphetamine use among woman, minorities and teens is getting worse.

HEROIN – USA
The Heroin Diaries: A Year in the Life of a Shattered Rock Star – HARP Magazine

Motley Crüe’s 2001 autobiography The Dirt is still the benchmark by which chronicles of rock debauchery are measured. So what compels Crüe bassist Nikki Sixx to go beyond that tell-all and tell more?

HEROIN – UK
Britain is stoned at home and sold out in Helmand – The Guardian

The vast increase in opium poppy farming in Afghanistan is indicative of an inability to grasp a basic law of economics

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Clean out the medicine cabinet: Prescription stomach pills could be hurting you – The Cherokee Sentinel

This medication joins a long line of prescription drugs that were taken off the market due to side effects that were more harmful to the patient than the remedy.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Prescription Drug Abuse Reaching Epidemic Levels In Utah – KCPW News

Utah leads the nation in non-medical use of prescription drugs. This fact has caused many in the medical community to call abuse of prescription drugs an epidemic in the state.

ALCOHOL – UK
Call for alcohol ads watershed – Scotsman News

ALCOHOL adverts on TV should be banned before 9pm to stop children being exposed to them, a campaign group said today.

ALCOHOL – USA
Berkeley, UC police crack down on underage drinking – The Mercury News

For a fifth year, the Berkeley Police Department is using a sizable grant from the state Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control to crack down on underage drinking and stores and eateries selling booze to minors.

OPIUM – USA
Opium business in Afghanistan must be halted – My West Texas

When we read stories of illegal drug use and abuse it pains us to think about all the lives that are broken or taken off track for the search and lure of an artificial high.

OPIUM – USA
Afghan opium production at record levels – Reuters

Afghanistan produced 93 percent of the world’s opium in 2007, up from 92 percent last year.

ALCOHOL – UK
Call for alcohol advert watershed – All About You

A campaign group has called for a ban on television adverts for alcoholic drinks before the nine o’clock watershed.
 

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Docs often write off patient side-effect concerns – MSNBC

When patients feel they might be having an adverse drug effect, doctors will very often dismiss their concerns, a new study shows.

ALCOHOL – USA
U.K. Alcohol Troubles Traced to Low Prices – Join Together

Alcohol that is “too cheap, too readily available, and too strong” is fueling the U.K.’s massive drinking problems, in the words of Cheshire chief constable Peter Fahy.

OPIUM – USA
Taliban Drive Record Afghan Poppy Crop – Join Together

Cultivation of opium poppies fell in northern Afghanistan but increased 45 percent in Helmand Province, where Taliban rebels use proceeds from international drug trafficking to fund their war against the Afghan government and its western allies.

OPIUM – USA
U.N.: Taliban fuels record Afghan opium levels – CNN News

Afghan opium poppy cultivation has exploded to a new record high this year, with the multibillion dollar trade fueled by Taliban militants and corrupt officials in President Hamid Karzai’s government, a U.N. report said.

METH – USA
New Program Fights Meth Addictions – Keloland

Methamphetamine has emerged as one of the most rampant drugs across the country, and that’s especially true in rural locations.

PAINKILLER – USA
Real pain management has given way to pill-popping – The Tennessean

Today, a plethora of painkilling drugs has improved the lives of many Americans. But drugs such as codeine, morphine, oxycodone, hydrocodone and meperidine can’t always be well-managed, and have become the problem rather than the solution for many others.

HEROIN – USA
Dallas soccer league formed to combat ‘cheese’ heroin – The Houston Chronicle

A youth soccer league created this summer to stem the popularity of a dangerous heroin mix known as “cheese” has grown to include 112 teams, the league’s director said.

ADDICTION – USA
B.C. lands ‘Addiction’ preview screening – Battle Creek Enquirer

The Substance Abuse Council of Calhoun County will host a preview screening on the HBO documentary, “Addiction,” at 7 p.m. Sept. 20 at Calhoun Christian School, 20 Woodrow St.

ADDICTION – USA
Day-camp speaker presents harrowing tale of addiction – Olney Daily Mail

It has been about a decade since Rob Rolfingsmeyer decided to stop using and selling drugs and start pushing a different message.

METHADONE – USA
Letters, faxes, and e-mail – The Birmingham News

Regarding “Methadone fight divides community” (The News, Sunday): The most respected federal survey on drug use found 14 percent of Alabamians ages 18 to 25 reported using narcotic pain medicines improperly.

DRUGS – USA
Pill usage in schools – KOKI Fox News

Kids are back in school and so are drugs.  Just today, a McLain High School student was found with marijuana.

 PRESCRIPTION – USA
Prescription drug fraud on the rise in Montana – Daily Inter Lake

Prescription drug fraud is on the rise in Northwest Montana. And as the sale of painkillers continues to skyrocket, law enforcement officials say they have just scratched the problem’s surface.

ALCOHOL – USA
Alcopops are Liquor, Not Beer, Calif. Tax Board Rules – Join Together

In a groundbreaking ruling, the California State Board of Equalization (BOE) has ruled that so-called “alcopop” drinks should be taxed as distilled spirits, rather than continuing to be subject to lower beer taxes.

ALCOHOL – USA
Technology Versus Drunk Driving – Join Together

Officials are increasingly turning to ignition-interlock devices in the campaign to prevent drunk driving, the Associated Press reported.

ALCOHOL – NI
FUTO bans alcohol on campus – The Vanguard

THE management of Fed-eral University of Technology, Owerri (FUTO), has banned the sale and serving of all brands of alcoholic drinks in the university campus.

METH – USA
The meth connection — Drug, sensational crimes have long association in region – North County Times

From superior court judges to casual newspaper readers, residents of San Diego County already know of the connection between violent crime and methamphetamine abuse.

MARIJUANA – USA
Ex-tokers wrestle with telling kids not to smoke – MSNBC News

It’s high time for parents to come clean about pot, some experts say.

OPIUM – UK
Afghan opium production at record levels – Reuters Factbox

Afghanistan produced 93 percent of the world’s opium in 2007, up from 92 percent last year, the annual United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) report released on Monday said. Here are some key facts from the report and the opium cultivation cycle in Afghanistan.

ALCOHOL – UK
Children ‘exposed to alcohol ads on TV’ – The Telegraph

Children are exposed to alcohol commercials during popular television shows, a campaign group warned yesterday.

ALCOHOL – FRANCE
Caffeinated alcohol-craze stimulates industry attacks – Food Navigator

Criticisms of alcoholic energy drinks in the US, could also have effect Europe’s ready-to-drink (RTD) beverage market, a health expert has warned.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Prescription Drug Abuse – WTAP News

Addiction specialists in Washington County say prescription pain pills are one of the most common drug addictions the have seen recently.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Studies find more teens abusing prescription drugs – Daytona Beach News-Journal

While marijuana is the local drug of choice for teens, followed by alcohol, state and national studies show prescription drug abuse, from pain medication to attention-deficit drugs, are on a steady rise.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Abuse of prescription drugs is a state crisis – Enid News

Oklahomans use a lot of them. And, their use is increasing at a staggering rate.
PRESCRIPTION – USA
Law enforcement officials see more abuse of prescription drugs – Marietta Times

Washington County Sheriff Larry Mincks says one reason for the increased use of prescription drugs in the area may be related to limited access to illegal narcotics like heroin.
COCAINE – USA
Higher-Educated Individuals Less Likely To Be Persistent Cocaine Users – Medical News Today

Persistent cocaine use among highly educated individuals dramatically decreased after 1990, whereas use among non-high school graduates remained constant.
DRUGS – USA
Evidence In Sewage Of Community-Wide Drug Abuse – Medical News Today

Public health officials may soon be able to flush out more accurate estimates on illegal drug use in communities across the country thanks to a screening test described at the 234th national meeting of the American Chemical Society, the world’s largest scientific society.
ALCOHOL – UK
In Britain, ever-cheaper alcohol is prompting legal action – Christian Science Monitor

Two years after permitting licensed premises to sell alcohol 24/7, pressure is indeed mounting on the British government to tackle an alcohol problem – but not because of round-the-clock drinking.
ALCOHOL – USA
Firefighter contract includes alcohol tests – The Enquirer

City Manager Milton Dohoney said the alcohol clause - it sets a blood/alcohol level of 0.04 that can trigger discipline - was important to him because “it allows us to have another level of accountability with the public.”

ALCOHOL – USA
ASU police get tough on alcohol violations – Arizona Republic

During the days before Arizona State University students started back to class Monday, ASU police arrested at least 20 people for alcohol-related crimes.
RITALIN – USA
Among teens, a new kind of pharming – Delmarva Daily Times

Teens across the country are gaining access to drugs just as addictive and abusive as cocaine, only they’re often free and already in many homes.
METH – USA
Study finds link between meth, loss of muscle control – North County Times

Some young methamphetamine abusers may be in danger of developing Parkinson’s disease like symptoms later in life, according to research findings released last week.
PAINKILLER – USA
Doctor: Abuse Of Painkiller Takes New, Dangerous Form – NBC San Diego News

Some doctors are calling it the new crack cocaine — drug abusers are getting high by smoking the powerful painkiller OxyContin.
PAINKILLER – USA
Painkiller abuse ’rampant,’ local doctor says – The Daily Star

The use of some powerful painkillers has more than doubled in New York over the past few years, and this area has also seen an increase in their misuse.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
What to do with old prescription medication? – The Journal Review

One of the questions commonly asked of pharmacists is how to dispose of prescription medication.

MORPHINE – SOUTH AFRICA
New method lights the way for improved testing for drugs – Engineering News

As highlighted by various dop- ing scandals in the world of sports, drug abuse can appear anywhere. Current methods for testing for drug abuse are cumbersome, nonspecific, and lengthy.

METH – USA
Bluffs Takes Crack At Meth Problem With Education Campaign – KETV Omaha News

On Thursday, officials rolled “Meth 360,” a program to help residents understand how pervasive meth is in the community.

PAINKILLER – USA
Rx painkiller abuse crosses all lines – Chillicothe Gazette

The vices of illegal addictions such as prescription painkiller abuse is known all too well here in the Scioto Valley.

DRUGS – USA
Online pharmacies a growing source of drugs – WAVY News

People addicted to prescription drugs are increasingly avoiding doctors and hospitals to get their supply. Instead, they’re relying on the Internet.

PAINKILLER – USA
Use of painkillers on the rise across Montana – Montana’s News Station KPAX

The number of pain killers being sold at Montana pharmacies is on the rise and has soared nearly 700% from 1997 to 2005.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
FDA Plans To Study Effects of Direct-To-Consumer Prescription Drug Ads – The Consumerist

Direct-to-consumer drug ads show pretty pictures of people laughing while running through fields of flowers and enjoying romantic dinners and such while a monotone voice speaks about side-effects like diarrhea, blot clots, and death. You’re watching, but are you really listening?

COEDINE – USA
FDA warns about codeine, breast-feeding – South Bend Tribune

The government is warning nursing mothers to be careful about codeine pain relievers following the death of a 13-day-old breast-fed infant from a morphine overdose.

ALCOHOL – UK
Female secretaries ‘at risk from alcohol’ – The Telegraph

An analysis of deaths caused by alcohol has uncovered the professions most at risk of drinking themselves into an early grave.

ALCOHOL – USA
Experts Counter Drunk Driving With Tech – The Washington Post

Technology that prevents a drunken driver from starting a vehicle holds the promise of greatly reducing alcohol-related deaths, the government and auto safety groups said Wednesday.

DRUGS – USA
Community-Wide Drug Testing Via Wastewater – Join Together

Oregon State University researchers say it’s possible to get a snapshot of the drug use in a particular community by drug-testing samples of wastewater from public sewage systems

ALCOHOL – USA
AGs Urge Crackdown on Marketing of Alcoholic Energy Drinks – Join Togther

A group of 28 state attorneys general is calling on the Bush administration to crack down on marketing of alcoholic energy drinks that they say targets youth with potency claims.

PRESCRIPTION - USA

Statewide database could cut down on prescription drug abuse – WINK News                                                                  

Getting prescription drugs from various doctors to feed an addiction — or so-called ‘doctor shopping’ — is a problem on the rise. That’s the word from Lee county deputies and they say it’s a problem that has to stop.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Rx pain drug sales on the rise – Asheville Citizen-Times

Retail sales of prescription painkillers more than doubled in Western North Carolina over an eight-year period, reflecting a nationwide increase in the number of people taking medication for pain.

METH – USA
Wastewater chemistry reveals patterns of illicit drug use in muncipalities – EV Living

A team of researchers has developed an automated monitoring method that makes it possible to detect traces of drugs, from cocaine to caffeine, in municipal wastewater and to monitor the patterns of drug use in entire communities.

COCAINE – COLOMBIA
Historic High: Young Italian Males are Using More Cocaine than Ever – Shared Responsibility

A study conducted by Italy’s parliament shows that cocaine consumption among males aged 25 to 34 has risen 62% over the past three years.

MORPHINE – USA
Americans taking more pain pills – WEAU TV News

Are you one of the many people who own a bottle of pain pills in your desk drawer? An Associated Press analysis shows Americans are taking pain pills more than ever before.
ADDERALL – CANADA
American Kids Being Drugged To Death – Lawyersand Settlements

As result of the marketing power the pharmaceutical industry obtained by spending tens of billions of dollars to gain influence over politicians in power, the FDA and the medical profession, American kids are being pumped full of the most powerful and dangerous psychiatric medications on the market, in drug cocktails that are literally killing them.
CODEINE – USA
Center for Molecular Medicine pioneers test to protect nursing infants – Rapid Growth Media

This week, the Grand Rapids-based Center for Molecular Medicine (CMM) announced it is the only lab in the Midwest with the capability to test nursing mothers for codeine risks that can cause morphine overdoses in nursing infants.
ALCOHOL – USA
Alcohol-Related Driving Deaths Up – FOX News

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration released data showing there were 13,470 deaths in 2006 involving drivers and motorcycle operators with blood alcohol levels of .08 or higher, which is the legal limit for adults throughout the country.
ALCOHOL – USA
Alcohol plus caffeine may equal DUIs – Chicago Sun-Times
Attorneys general warn mix in energy drinks can mask intoxication, could put more drunks on road.
ADDICTION – USA
Officials say kids in families with addiction often ‘ignored’ – My West Texas

Some Midland substance abuse counselors have opened their focus to specifically target children and other family members in the recovery process.

CANNABIS – UK
FRANK cannabis campaign targets young people – Community Care
Drugs information service FRANK has claimed success in a campaign to raise young people’s awareness of the impact of cannabis.

CANNABIS – NEW ZEALAND
Eastern Bay youth at risk from high cannabis use – Regional News
The national Alcohol Drug Helpline has reported a significant increase in the number of 12 to 18-year-olds coming to them with cannabis related problems.

PAINKILLERS – USA
Painkiller use skyrockets in state – News Examiner-Enterprise
The use of prescription painkillers in Oklahoma has skyrocketed over the last decade, far outpacing the national average, statistics show.

CODEINE – USA
FDA warns of codeine, breast milk – Los Angeles Times
A few women rapidly metabolize the pain reliever into morphine, posing an overdose risk to their babies.

ALCOHOL – USA
Alcohol-saturated ‘fun’ on campus can be lethal – USA Today
As students head to the nation’s college campuses, relishing their new independence, criminal prosecutions in the deaths of two young men are a sober reminder of how quickly alcohol-fueled “fun” can spin out of control.

ALCOHOL – SOUTH AFRICA
Alcohol abuse a drain on economy – IOL News
More than double the amount collected in liquor taxes is spent on the social costs of alcohol-related trauma and accidents in South Africa each year.

ALCOHOL – SOUTH AFRICA
Alcohol, drug crisis grips South Africa – IOL News
South Africa is facing a massive drug and alcohol abuse crisis, the government has admitted.

METH – USA
Scientists need just a teaspoon to drug-test whole cities – KTVZ News
Oregon State University researchers have figured out how to give an entire community a drug test using just a teaspoon of wastewater from a city’s sewer plant.

PAINKILLERS – USA
Painkiller use almost double in 8-year span – Boston Herald News
Retail sales of five leading painkillers nearly doubled over an eight-year period, reflecting a surge in use by patients nationwide who are living in a world of pain.

PAINKILLERS – USA
Painkiller use, abuse rising nationally – The Examiner
A dramatic increase in prescriptions painkiller sales could hurt those who need them most.

ALCOHOL – USA
Researchers Say Heavy Drinking May Cause Stroke – Join Together
Heavy drinkers increase their risk of stroke by up to 22 percent, according to researchers who studied a group of more than 64,000 Chinese men ages 40 and older.

CODIENE – USA
FDA Warns Nursing Mothers Of Rare Codeine Risk to Infants – The Wall Street Journal

The Food and Drug Administration warned that the widely used painkiller codeine, if taken by certain nursing mothers, could potentially pose a risk of overdose to their infants.
ALCOHOL – USA
Alcohol increases stroke risk in China – United Press International

Stroke, the leading cause of death and disability for men in China, is associated with high alcohol consumption, a U.S. study found.

ALCOHOL – USA
South Africa: Govt Kicks Off Anti-Alcohol Abuse Drive – All Africa

Alcohol abuse costs the state more than R9 billion per year, and this has prompted government to build on a massive awareness campaign, warning liquor consumers and traders about the risks of drinking alcohol.

METH – USA
Identifying a meth lab – WQAD News

When you think of meth being made you think of anhydrous ammonia.

PAINKILLERS – USA
Surge in painkiller sales worries Missouri leaders – Columbia Tribune

Sales of three major painkillers have been on the rise in Missouri in recent years.

PAINKILLERS – USA
Ohio painkiller use rates quadruple – The Cincinnati Post

The use of three major painkillers more than quadrupled in Ohio between 1997 and 2005, according to an Associated Press analysis of statistics from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.

PAINKILLERS – USA
Painkiller sales explode in southern Indiana – The Indianapolis Star

Sales of OxyContin — a widely abused painkiller that delivers a heroin-like high — rose 584 percent across the state during that nine-year period.

PAINKILLERS – USA
Some areas of Montana see explosive growth in painkiller sales – Montanas News Station

Certain areas of Montana have seen an explosive growth in painkiller sales in recent years, especially in oxycodone-based drugs.

PAINKILLERS – USA
Sales of Narcotic Painkillers Up 90 Percent in Decade – Join Together

Americans are buying 90 percent more painkillers containing codeine, morphine, oxycodone, hydrocodone and meperidine than they did in 1997, according to data from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Prescription drugs safety class is Thursday – The Jackson Sun

Physicians, family nurse practitioners, pharmacists and dentists are invited to take a one-day seminar on prescription drug safety Thursday at the Doubletree Hotel in Jackson.

METH – AUSTRALIA
Methamphetamine use has long-term behavioral consequences – Medical News

Young adults who use methamphetamine may be more vulnerable to age-related brain degeneration when they grow older, new animal research suggests.

METH – USA
Grant may bring $1 million to fight crime – Great Falls Tribune

Early in the decade, Cascade County “was dubbed the meth lab capital of Montana” and sported 29 known meth labs, Great Falls Police Chief Corky Grove recalled Friday.

METH – USA
New Instant Meth Tests Can Put Homebuyers At Ease – CBS Denver News

Industrial hygienists, real estate agents and potential home buyers can now use a new and fairly simple way to find out if methamphetamine has been cooked or even smoked in a house.

METH – USA
Survey shows county residents ‘vaguely aware’ of meth use – The Cortez Journal

A survey conducted this summer indicates Montezuma County’s community is just vaguely aware of methamphetamine use in the area.

DRUGS – INDIA
‘Abuse of synthetic and pharmaceutical drugs is increasing’ – Economic Times

There is an increasing trend of abuse of synthetic and pharmaceutical drugs and concrete steps should be taken to address the issue, the Narcotics Control Bureau chief said here on Saturday.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
New Effort To Keep Teens From Abusing Prescription Drugs – ABC Local News

The Partnership for a Drug-Free America sounded the alarm to all parents Thursday. Its research shows nearly 20% of teens nationwide report abusing prescription drugs, with painkillers like vicodin, at the top of their list.

ALCOHOL – USA
Tenn. medical group wants ban on alcohol ads – Atlanta Journal Constitution

The Tennessee Medical Association wants colleges and universities to ban alcohol advertising from their sports programs.

ALCOHOL – USA
MCC students to host alcohol awareness event – M-live

Hot dogs. Bratwursts. Ice cream. Jazz. And conversation. Plenty of conversation. All of this may not strike most people as a formula for alcohol awareness, but members of the Muskegon Community College Sociology Club would beg to differ.

PRESCRIPTION – UK
Concerns over prescription abuse – IC Wales

THE first signs people are abusing the free prescriptions system can be revealed today.

ALCOHOL – USA
Peers press friends into drinking, experts say Teens overlook alcohol dangers – The Leaf Chronicle

To understand the scope of the problem of teen drinking and alcohol abuse in our area, one needs only talk to a teen that has experienced it.

ALCOHOL – USA
Heavy drinking raises risk of stroke – MSNBC News

A large study in China suggests heavy alcohol consumption may increase the risk of stroke in men and the researchers recommend heavy drinkers be targeted for prevention strategies.

PAINKILLERS – USA
Painkiller use rising at alarming rate – MSNBC News

Report: Sales of drugs like Oxycontin jumped 90 percent from 1997-2005