Drug News

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Prescription Drugs-causing more pain and suffering than comfort and relief – Trans World News

No two addicts are ever exactly alike. Neither are any two types of addiction. That’s why it’s so important that individual drug and alcohol rehab programs be constructed on a case-by-cases basis.

CODEINE – AUSTRALIA
Painkillers linked to kidney failure – News.com.au

Codeine combination medicines such as Nurofen Plus, available over the counter in pharmacies, have again been linked to serious medical complications.

CODEINE – AUSTRALIA
Painkiller link to bleeding ulcers, renal failure – The West Australian

Powerful painkillers containing codeine have been linked to dozens of fresh cases of bleeding stomach ulcers and renal failure, reinvigorating debate about abuse of the popular drugs.

ALCOHOL – USA
Underage Overconsumption of Alcohol Targeted in France – Join Together

French youth are not demurely sipping wine in Paris cafes: rather, experts say, they are drinking more like their U.S. counterparts and bingeing with the intention of getting drunk.

ALCOHOL – USA
Study Says Bingeing Worse at Colleges with Big Drinking Culture, Lax Rules – Join Together

The college environment plays a key role in student binge drinking, researchers say, with bingeing rates higher at schools that have a strong drinking culture, few alcohol-control policies, weak enforcement, and easy access to alcohol.

ALCOHOL – USA
Alcohol: Do you know if you’re safe to drive? – Newsday

So you just had a quick happy hour with your colleagues and are ready to hit the road. You think you are safe to drive after having had just two drinks. But if you’re pulled over, you may be blowing a lot more alcohol into the Breathalyzer than you think.

ALCOHOL – UK
Road safety: Impose total alcohol ban for teenage drivers, says chief medical officer – Guardian

A zero drink-driving limit should be imposed on all drivers under 20, the chief medical officer recommended yesterday, saying that such a ban would save lives.

ALCOHOL – UK
Conditions In The College Environment Encourage Binge Drinking – Medical News Today

Heavy alcohol use, or binge drinking, among college students in the United States is tied to conditions in the college environment.

PAINKILLER – AUSTRALIA
Painkiller linked to bleeding ulcers – Canberra Times

Powerful painkillers containing codeine have been linked to dozens of fresh cases of bleeding stomach ulcers and renal failure, reinvigorating debate about abuse of the popular drugs.

DRUGS – AUSTRALIA
Crack cocaine and heroin costs less than a pint of beer – Courier Mail

DEADLY drugs such as heroin and crack cocaine are being peddled for less than a pint of beer on the streets of England.

DRUGS – UK
Drug addiction: ‘The true cost often ends in tragic loss of life’ – Scotsman

It also demonstrates that addiction knows no bounds and that drug misuse is not confined, as many would choose to believe, to areas of deprivation.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Medical Mixups; Hospital Prescription Drug Error Can Lead to Deaths – Injury Board

We have been aware of the shocking reality that 98,000 hospitalized patients die each year in the United States due to error for nearly a decade. What has been done?

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Drugstore slipups a prescription for death – New York Daily News

New York pharmacists filled an estimated 210,000 prescriptions with the wrong drug or dose in 2006, putting patients at risk of illness and even death, a new analysis shows.

ALCOHOL – USA
U.K. Docs Want Graphic Warnings on Alcohol Packages – Join Together

Alcoholic beverages should feature the same kind of graphic images and warnings found on tobacco products.

ALCOHOL – UK
Teachers to be given power to search for drugs, alcohol and cigarettes – Times Online

Teachers will be allowed by law to search children for drugs, alcohol and cigarettes in school under proposals today which will be accepted by the Schools Secretary.

ALCOHOL – UK
Teachers to get powers to search pupils for drugs and alcohol – Telegraph
Teachers will be given powers to search pupils for drugs and alcohol as part of a new drive to restore discipline in schools.

ALCOHOL – UK
France gets tough on alcohol – Scotsman

FRANCE is to ban drinking in public near schools and the sale of alcohol to minors as part of a crackdown on binge-drinking among youths.

METH – USA
Ads help teens see dangers of meth – The Arizona Republic

Over the last year, the Arizona Meth Project has delivered riveting depictions of the dangers of meth use to young Arizonans.

ALCOHOL – USA
FTC Supports Self-Regulation of Alcohol Industry Ads – Join Together

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) says that 92 percent of alcohol advertising meets the industry’s self-imposed threshold on limiting underage exposure to beer, wine and liquor ads and urged the industry to expand the self-regulatory standards to event sponsorships as well as TV and Internet ads.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Many Buying Prescriptions Online Without Authorization – WLNS TV News

Just about anything can be purchased from the convenience of your home with just the click of a mouse, but now a new report says people are using this easy method to buy drugs online that are not supposed to be available over the counter.

ALCOHOL – USA
Milford official proposes student alcohol testing – Newsday

Milford’s superintendent of schools is proposing that students be subjected to breath testing for alcohol at school functions.

DRUGS – USA
What Happens When Entire Cities Become “Drug-Free School Zones”? – Drug Law Blog

What happens when laws that enhance drug sentences in “drug-free school zones” end up covering almost the entire geographical area of a city because of the density of school concentration in the area?

METHADONE – USA
N.C. methadone overdoses rise – Myrtle Beach Sun News

Methadone, long prescribed as an alternative to heroin, is proving to be a hazard of its own.

METHADONE – USA
Killer or cure – Altoona Mirror

A drug commended years ago for helping to loosen heroin’s deadly grip in Pennsylvania and beyond may now be the region’s No. 1 killer.

METH – USA
Pharmacy logs already helping meth prosecutions – Press-Register

Records of ephedrine and pseudoephedrine purchases already have begun to help authorities put away people who provide methamphetamine cooks with the vital raw ingredients they need to churn out the drug, according to prosecutors and a review of court records.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Prescription For Addiction – And Death – The Chattanoogan

We are on course to see a 450% increase in prescription drug abuse/addiction by children ages 10 – 17, from 2002 through 2008. When are we going to wake up?

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Prescription painkiller deaths spike in Nevada – Monterey County Herald

A newspaper investigation found skyrocketing abuse of prescription narcotics in southern Nevada, accompanied by a startling increase in the number of fatal overdoses.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Prescription drug abuse growing, seen as safe high among teens, experts say – My West Texas

http://www.mywesttexas.com/articles/2008/07/13/news/top_stories/prescription_drugs_sunday.txt

When an adolescent was rushed to Midland Memorial’s Emergency Room within the last year because of a prescription drug overdose, it looked like everything was under control. Such overdoses aren’t uncommon, officials said, and like others, this patient showed all the signs of being in stable condition and was released. But, soon after going home, the young adult died.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Web sites linked to rise in prescription-drug abuse – Omaha World-Herald

A large majority of 365 Internet sites that advertise or sell controlled medications by mail are offering to supply the drugs without a proper prescription, according to a new study.

COCAINE – UK
Cocaine used in 95% of clubs in London borough – CRP News

Council officials in Kensington & Chelsea found more than 95 per cent of bars and clubs they tested showed cocaine had been used on their premises.

DRUGS – UK
Olympics: All 1,500 British athletes to be drug tested before leaving for Beijing – Guardian

From pistol shooters to shot putters, every British athlete competing in this summer’s Beijing Olympics is being tested for performance-enhancing drugs in the most extensive anti-doping campaign in this country’s Olympic history.

ALCOHOL – NEW ZEALAND
Minister studies booze problems in Scotland – National Business Review
Associate Justice Minister Lianne Dalziel is learning first hand how a country with a reputation for heavy drinking is handling its alcohol problems.

ALCOHOL – AUSTRALIA
Alcohol involved in 100 young deaths – The Sydney Morning Herald

At least 100 young people die each year with a blood alcohol level at or above .05, figures show.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Rogue Internet Pharmacies Sell Controlled Drugs Without Prescriptions – Med Headlines

A new report issued by the National Center of Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) warns consumers against the vast array of drugs sold by unregulated online pharmacies. These pharmacies not only sell controlled drugs without an accompanying prescription, they do so without verification of age.

DRUGS – USA
Prescription drug abuse, deaths grow in Vegas area – Las Vegas Sun

A newspaper investigation found skyrocketing abuse of prescription narcotics in southern Nevada, accompanied by a startling increase in the number of fatal overdoses.

DRUGS – USA
Time To Take Overdoses Seriously – And Response – The Chattanoogan

Our teenagers and young adults do not have an understanding of the tragedy that will unfold while they experiment with these drugs. Pills are getting into the wrong hands.

ADDICTION – USA
E-Addiction: Your teen and the World Wide Web of drugs – New York Daily News

It’s about a brand new report from Columbia University’s National Center on Addiction, trumpeting that “the Internet is a pharmaceutical candy store.”

HEROIN – USA
Heroin Addict Hopes for Rehab – but Addiction Hard to Overcome – Voice of America

The international heroin trade affects the lives of millions of people worldwide. It is destructive for producer and user countries, if in different ways.

HEROIN – USA
Heroin use on rise in Shelton – Connecticut Post

Arrests this week bear out the police finding that heroin is becoming more widely abused here, especially by teenagers and young adults.

DRUGS – USA
Addictive Drugs Available “With The Click Of A Mouse” – eFlux Media

Despite efforts by governmental agencies to control illegal Internet sales of prescription-free drugs, a large majority of 365 Internet sites continue to advertise or sell them.

ALCOHOL – INDIA
Alcohol & Drug Abuse News – Med India

he new study led by Mark A. Smith neuroscientist and Associate Professor from Davidson College has suggested that regular exercise can lower the tendency to become addicted to illegal drugs.

ADDICTION – UK
Study finds addictive drugs easily ordered online – The Associated Press

More than three-quarters of Web sites that offer highly addictive medications do not require a prescription, according to a study released Wednesday.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Prescription Drugs Still Easy To Buy Online – Web Pro News

Although the number of Web sites selling controlled prescription drugs, like OxyContin and Valium, has decreased in the past year, 85 percent of Web sites selling such drugs do not require a prescription.

METH – USA
Idaho Meth Project shows positive results – Idaho Statesman

While our communities cope with the devastation wrought by methamphetamine addiction, we cannot afford to discount the concrete solutions offered by a proven prevention program.

ALCOHOL – USA
Prior Lake working to prevent drug, alcohol problems – Minneapolis Star Tribune

A community task force examining a range of threats to public safety has decided that drugs and alcohol are among the most urgent.

ALCOHOL – UK
Alcohol should carry graphic warning pictures say doctors – Telegraph

Alcohol bottles and cans should carry graphic pictures of liver disease and mouth cancer to deter binge drinking, doctors have said.

MORPHINE – USA
Ratio-Morphine Tablets Recalled in Canada Due to Risk of Accidental Overdose – Pharma Live

Health Canada is warning consumers not to use the prescription drug ratio-Morphine SR in 15 milligram (mg), 30 mg, and 60 mg formats. Some tablets may contain more morphine than the label indicates, exposing patients to the potential risk of accidental overdose.

PAINKILLER – USA
Medicated to Death: Painkillers Kill More Than All Drugs Combined – CBS TV News

Attached to that long list of drugs is long list of families hurting. More than 12 died in recent months from a painkiller overdose, their families’ lives shattered by narcotic abuse.

METH – IRELAND
County drug use increases dramatically – Meath Chronicle

Plans for a new drugs prevention and advisory service centre for Meath and surrounding counties should be ready by the end of the summer.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
New program focuses on prescription drug disposal – The Citizen-Journal

Sheriff George T. Lasater and Liaison Officer William D. Schneider of the Charlevoix County Sheriff’s Office announced a new program for the disposal of prescription drugs.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Abuse of prescription painkillers spurs move for online database – Ventura County Star

Pain patients understand why California’s attorney general says he needs to raise $3.5 million to stop addicts and drug dealers who use doctors to stockpile Vicodin and OxyContin.

CODEINE – USA
Australian Researchers Find Serious Side-Effect to Codeine – WCAV News

Australian researchers have found a dangerous new side-effect from using too much Codeine. Approved usage of the opiate has been for severe cough, diarrhea, mild pain, and irritable bowel syndrome. However, Australian researchers have discovered that Codeine can cause hearing impairment.

ALCOHOL – USA
Games Contribute to Youths Drinking Themselves to Death – Join Together

An analysis of federal records shows that 157 college-age individuals drank themselves to death between 1999 and 2005, and a separate analysis of news reports showed that many of the victims were extremely intoxicated.

MORPHINE – CANADA
Warning: Ratio-Morphine Tablets Recalled in Canada Due to Risk of Accidental Overdose – Market Wire

Some tablets may contain more morphine than the label indicates, exposing patients to the potential risk of accidental overdose.

DRUGS – USA
Most drug Web sites breaking federal law – San Francisco Chronicle

The online trade is stoking the rising abuse of addictive and dangerous prescription drugs, the authors and federal officials say.

ALCOHOL – UK
Alcoholism-Associated Molecular Adaptations In Brain Neurocognitive Circuits – Medical News Today

After many years of heavy drinking, alcohol produces pathological alterations in the brain. In many alcoholics these changes culminate in massive social deterioration and disorders of memory and learning.

DRUGS – AUSTRALIA
Kids find it easy to get alcohol, drugs – The Australian

MORE than 40 per cent of Year 11 students find it easy to obtain alcohol and drugs, and one in three is more interested in “sensation-seeking” than respecting accepted standards of behaviour.

ALCOHOL – USA
Rising Alcohol Abuse Seen Among Returning Veterans – Join Together

Veterans of the Iraq and Afghan wars are increasingly turning to alcohol when they return home to cope with the lingering stress of their combat experiences, sometimes with tragic consequences.

DRUGS – USA
Multiple Drugs Cause Most Overdoses – Join Together

METHADONE – USA
High Dosage Methadone Users Can Now Utilize Medical Detox – PR Web

Novus Medical Detox Center announced this week that they have successfully detoxed a number of patients that had been taking high daily doses of methadone–something few other medical detox facilities will even attempt.

METHADONE – USA
Methadone Abuse Continues – Trans World News

Narconon Drug Rehab in Georgia warns that methadone abuse continues despite evidence that methadone misuse can cause death.

PAINKILLER – USA
Painkiller abuse treatment done in a very exclusive & loving environment – Trans World News

Painkiller abuse is different than alcohol abuse is different than cocaine abuse, and so perhaps it should go without saying that painkiller treatment and alcohol treatment and cocaine treatment must all proceed along distinct tracks.

PAINKILLER – USA
Officials urge action on painkiller abuse – Las Vegas Sun

State legislators and regulators Monday called the Sun’s reports about the startling rise in the use of narcotic painkillers in Nevada a wake-up call to improve patient care in the state.

ADDICTION – MALAYSIAN
Drug Addiction, A Chronic Brain Disease – Bernama

The number of drug addicts is anticipated to double by 2015 from the current 270,000 and the figure indicates addiction to drugs is more than a social or behavioural problem.

ADDICTION – CANADA
America’s Top Drug and Alcohol Rehab offers Soma Addiction Treatment – FPRC

Like other prescription drugs, the abuse of Soma is associated with tolerance, dependence and addiction. The signs and symptoms have no fundamental difference from those that can be found accompanying the abuse of other prescription medications with tranquilizer or sedative effects.

ALCOHOL – USA
Town Hall meeting set to discuss alcohol abuse – Jackson County Chronicle

Dinking rates continue to rise in our community for adults and children. Deaths continue to rise in our county due to drunk driving either being a passenger, driver, bystander or occupant. Intervention and prevention are tools that the community can use to prevent these articles from re-appearing.

ALCOHOL – USA
Campus Alcohol Abuse – KFYR TV News

For many young people, college is their first taste of freedom. And that freedom often involves alcohol. North Dakota leads the country when it comes to underage drinking. Recent survey results show fewer students are drinking alcohol than in years past, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t more work to do.

PAINKILLER – USA
TRACKING NEVADANS’ APPETITE FOR PAINKILLERS – Las Vegas Sun

The Sun discovered the startling increase in the number of narcotic painkillers consumed in Nevada after analyzing several thousand pages of Drug Enforcement Administration reports on the production and distribution of controlled substances to pharmacies and health care practitioners in the United States.

PAINKILLER – USA
Painkillers Leading to Heroin Overdoses – Newsradio 620

More people in the area have addictions to prescription painkillers, and it’s leading to more people dying from a stronger drug – heroin.

HEROIN – USA
Painkillers may be fueling heroin boom, officials say – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

The spike in people addicted to prescription painkillers has evolved into an alarming new trend: increasing heroin use.

CANNABIS – UK
HARINGEY: Buses to carry anti-cannabis message – This is Local London

Trains and buses across the borough are to become the vehicle for an anti-drug message to steer young people away from using cannabis.

METH – USA
Anti-meth campaign to start in Imperial Beach – San Diego Union Tribune

A county wide campaign to combat the use of methamphetamine will kick off in Imperial Beach today.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
National trend of prescription drug use hits home in Weymouth, survey shows – Patriot Ledger
A 2002 survey of alcohol and drug use among Weymouth teens didn’t even ask about prescription drugs. The idea that medicine cabinets were the new street corner wasn’t on the public radar.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
More Prescription Drug Abuse Seen in Las Vegas – KLAS TV News

“These are drugs that, of course, are readily accessible from the new dealer, which is parents and friends that have them in their medicine cabinet,” said Dr. Pohl.

METH – USA
Meth: A tough lesson – Appeal-Democrat

A three-day Appeal-Democrat series is focusing on three major aspects of the Mid-Valley meth scourge.

METH – USA
Music, speakers offer anti-meth message – Appeal-Democrat

Fifteen bands and artists played, six recovering meth addicts spoke and events including a watermelon-eating contest were held at the Music over Meth concert June 21 at Riverfront Park in Marysville.

ALCOHOL – USA
Drinking to destruction – Chicago Tribune

With a difficult exam behind or a weekend ahead, a college student goes drinking. After the youth ties one—or make that several—on, he or she is noticeably drunk, but friends simply put the inebriated to bed to “sleep it off.” Instead of passing out, the student passes away—and becomes another troubling statistic of alcohol poisoning.

HEROIN – USA
Heroin trafficking on the rise again in mid-Michigan – The Bay City Times

Heroin is again creeping into northeast Michigan communities, luring in users from a variety of demographics.

PRESCRIPTION – IRELAND
Prescribing drug abuse – Irish Medical Times

There has been a significant rise in prescriptions of drugs such as Valium (up by a fifth) and Xanax (up by 42 per cent) in the five years since the landmark Benzodazapine Report called for a ‘considerable reduction’ in use of such drugs.

ALCOHOL – AUSTRALIA
Binge drinking part of culture, say 81% – The Age

A NEW survey shows 81% of people say Australia has a binge drinking culture. Only 15% disagree, and 3% are unsure. The survey was conducted across all ages, both genders and all voting persuasions.

MARIJUANA – USA
Fourteen-year-olds consider first marijuana use – The Reporter

I’m 14 and friends of mine (I’ll call them Janine and Claire), go to Mexico a lot with Janine’s family where they hook up with older people and get drunk. Now, as a “present” to themselves for eight grade graduation, they plan to smoke marijuana.

CANNABIS – USA
Drug Use Highest In U.S. – Ivanhoe

New research reveals despite strong drug policies, the United States has the highest levels of cocaine and cannabis use among countries surveyed.

CANNABIS – INDIA
Drug mafia in India switches to high profit hybrid cannabis – Economic Times

A hybrid variety of cannabis, which was found to be used in countries like Mexico, has increasingly become popular among the Indians who grow it illegally as it increases the intoxication level and also double their production and profit margin.

ALCOHOL – USA
What Is Your Alcohol IQ? – Health News Digest
Alcohol education is tricky business. We educate people not to drink and drive. We caution about drinking too much and the dangers of alcohol abuse, but rarely do we give people information on how to drink responsibly.

METH – USA
Education needed to tackle meth problem – Farmington Daily Times

Methamphetamine use in San Juan County is a problem. Since 2002-2003, use and abuse has begun to soar. Although each person may not use meth, everyone is affected in one way or another by someone who does.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Rising use of painkillers taking deadly toll – Las Vegas Sun

The skyrocketing use and abuse of prescription narcotics in Las Vegas is accompanied by a similarly startling increase in the number of fatal overdoses, a Sun analysis has found.

METH – USA
Fight against methamphetamine has evolved – Appeal-Democrat

Yuba County’s director of family court services, has been observing the local methamphetamine scene long enough to know how the drug got one of its early nicknames — crank.

DRUGS – AUSTRALIA
Overdose Awareness Day – Salvation Army

We are inviting you to participate in Overdose Awareness Day 2008. This year, on the 31st August 2008, we will be remembering those who have died from having suffered overdose as well as those who live with permanent injuries from overdose.

DRUGS – UK
World Drug Day 2008 – UN Office on Drug and Crime

On 26 June, UNODC offices around the world held different events to celebrate the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking. On the same day, UNODC also launched its 2008 World Drug Report.

DRUGS – UK
Nearly one in 10 Welsh prisoners test positive for drugs – Western Mail

NEARLY one in 10 Welsh prisoners has tested positive for drugs in random tests, according to figures released under the Freedom of Information Act.

CANNABIS – UK
Skunk ‘psychosis risk’ warning – BBC News

People who smoke the strongest form of cannabis – known as skunk – may be more at risk of psychosis than those who use milder forms, UK researchers claim.

ALCOHOL – IRELAND
Alcohol ad regulation could prove troublesome – Sunday Business Post

The new self-regulatory codes on alcohol advertising sound comprehensive, but they could prove tricky to implement in some cases.

ALCOHOL – USA
More Drug, Alcohol Recognition Experts on the Road This Weekend – WFMZ News

Pennsylvania State Troopers will be stepping up patrols this holiday weekend. This year they’re also increasing efforts to recognize drivers who are under the influence.

METH – USA
Miss. Realtors Required To Disclose Meth Lab Houses – WAPT News

Mississippi home buyers will soon be able to find out if the house they want to purchase was used as a meth lab.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
More teens abusing prescription drugs – Canton Repository

When issued by a doctor, prescription drugs are supposed to offer a safe way to help people. They dilute pain, help control behavior, regulate sickness and heal ills. But for some, prescription drugs also offer an easy way to get high. And there are signs that abuse is rising among Ohio teens.

METH – USA
Minnesota’s anti-meth law is a big success story – DL Online

An anti- methamphetamine law passed in Minnesota three years ago has been a big success.

METH – USA
Official: Check your propane tanks – Jackson Sun

People grilling this summer should inspect their propane tanks as some methamphetamine producers are using them to store harmful chemicals.