Drug News

PRESCRIPTION – UK
Overuse of prescription drugs causes malnutrition – Belfast Telegraph

Overuse of prescription drugs can lead to a dangerous drop in people’s nutrition levels, according to a New Zealand pharmacist.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Prescription for dangerous study habits – Sacredheart Spectrum

Being a college student involves having the ability to handle multiple assignments at a time, requiring students to have high levels of concentration and the ability to focus. However, some students rely on giving themselves their own diagnosis by taking ADD medications without having a prescription in an effort to help them study better.

ADDICTION – USA
Educating Physician Trainees About Addiction – Science Daily

Researchers from Boston Medical Center (BMC) have found that education on addiction is inadequate during medical training, resulting in suboptimal medical care for those at risk. However, the research also found that a Chief Resident Immersion Training (CRIT) program in addiction medicine is an effective “train the trainers” model for dissemination of addiction knowledge and skills to generalist physician trainees.

DRUGS – UK
Publication Of Report To Government By Advisory Group On Drug And Alcohol Education, UK – Medical News Today

Speaking about the release of the Advisory Group on Drug and Alcohol Education’s report, and the government’s response, Eric Carlin, Chair of the Drug Education Forum, said: The problems that drugs and alcohol cause are too important for drug education to be an optional subject for parents or schools.

ALCOHOL – UK
Why Binge Drinking Is Bad For Your Bones – Medical News Today

Studies in recent years have demonstrated that binge drinking can decrease bone mass and bone strength, increasing the risk of osteoporosis.

DRUGS – UK
Drug Education:An Entitlement For All – Drug Education Forum

A report to Government by the Advisory Group on Drug and Alcohol Education.

HEROIN – USA
Heroin’s low cost may attract younger users – Eagle Tribune

A bag of heroin costs less than a pack of cigarettes, and that’s one of the main reasons more local teenagers are trying the narcotic, experts say.

HEROIN – UK
Warning over ‘bad’ batch of heroin – Crawley Observer

Police are warning drug users in Kent to be aware of a batch of “bad” heroin, which is currently in circulation.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Tips for keeping prescription drugs away from children – Home Town Life

How many prescriptions do you have in your home? Because they’re free and easy to find, they may be what your child uses to get high.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Prescription pills ‘easy to get, easy to hide’ for students – Cumberland Times-News

Police and school officials continue to try to reduce the illegal use of prescription pills in Garrett County schools, as these tend to be the drug of choice for most school-age students.

METH – USA
Methamphetamine use can cause dental problems – Munster Times

We have all read stories about the growing problem of drug use in our communities. Methamphetamines are near the forefront of the problem in Northwest Indiana. These drugs are inexpensive, easy to make, and can be used in several different ways. It can be taken orally, injected, smoked, or snorted.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Part 1: “Flushing Your Meds” – WECT News

If you check every warning label, you won’t find instructions for how to dispose of your prescriptions. With no federal or state regulation for consumers, many people leave them to gather dust in medicine cabinets or simply flush them down the toilet.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Part 2: “Flushing your meds” – WECT News

While prescription drugs can help in curing some ailments, they can be dangerous if used the wrong way.

DRUGS – UK
DrugScope welcomes government response to review of drug education – Drug Scope

DrugScope, the national membership organisation for the drug sector, has today welcomed the government response to a review of drug education undertaken by the Advisory Group on Drug and Alcohol Education.

DRUG – UK
Effective Drug Education Survey – Findings – The Drug Education Forum

A web based survey of over 350 drug education professionals. As part of the Children’s Plan the government committed themselves to reviewing the effective delivery of drug education in England.

METH – USA
Meth Expert Talks at the Idaho Conference on Health Care – KPVI News

Meth is a problem all over the country, because it’s a highly addictive drug. Thursday afternoon an expert addressed this growing problem at the Idaho conference on health care. Giving insight into a Meth addicts’ head.

DRUGS – USA
Prescription drug abuse bigger problem now than meth: Webb – Carmi Times

The good news, according to White County State’s Attorney T. Scott Webb, is that the methamphetamine epidemic that swept across White County several years ago has subsided. The bad news is that it has been supplanted, in part, by the abuse of prescription drugs.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Guv, local authorities fight against prescription drug deaths – Herald Extra

Prescription pain medication overdoses claimed 317 lives last year and 307 the year before, making it the No. 1 cause of injury death in the state. Such deaths — whether because of abuse or accident — more than doubled here between 1999 and 2004.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
More people continue to be injured, killed by prescription drugs – Seattle Post Intelligencer

A record number of deaths and serious injuries associated with prescription drugs were reported in the first quarter of 2008. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration received 20,745 new cases of serious injuries during the first quarter, an increase of 38 percent over 2007. The number of deaths reported is 4,824, a 2.6-fold increase from the previous quarter.

ALCOHOL – USA
Survey: Alcohol abuse remains problem at UConn – Newsday

One of every four University of Connecticut students say they have blacked out from heavy drinking during Spring Weekend festivities, according to a new survey.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Prescription drug injuries and deaths reach record levels – Los Angeles Times

The number of deaths and serious injuries associated with prescription drug use rose to record levels in the first quarter of this year, with 4,825 deaths and nearly 21,000 injuries, a watchdog group said Wednesday.

METH – INDIA
Why methamphetamine is so addictive and damaging to brain – Entertainment and Showbiz

A study has cast new light on why the drug methamphetamine is very addictive and damaging to the brain.

METH – USA
Organizers expect increase in attendance at anti-drug rally – Northwest Arkansas Times

More than 1, 000 students from 10 area schools will convene at Bud Walton Arena on Thursday to take part in this year’s Red Ribbon Rally.

DRUGS – USA
Spike In Accidental Overdose Deaths – Trans World News

A study appearing in the September 2008 issue of the Annals of Emergency Medicine showed that children under the age of 6 are overdosing on drugs.

ADDERALL – USA
Adderall abuse risk to grades, mental health – Arizona Daily Wildcat

As course work increases on campus, some students will risk their own personal health by taking stimulants such as Adderall, Concerta and Ritalin to help them keep up with their school work.

ADDICTION – USa
Parents Make A Difference: Preventing Drug Addiction – Trans World News

A recent study showed that parental guidance and counseling went a long way in keeping their children from becoming drug addicts.

HEROIN – UK
Documentary Shows The Horror Of Heroin Addiction – Glasgow Daily Record

THIS may be the most moving documentary of the week, as the latest Cutting Edge special takes a look inside a heroin-hit family.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Dramatic spike in deaths, injuries caused by prescription drugs – Seattle Post Intelligencer

Nationwide, there were 4,825 prescription-related deaths and nearly 21,000 injuries in the first quarter of this year. That’s an all-time high and close to a threefold increase in deaths from the previous quarter.

METH – NEW ZEALAND
Seizure prompts call to fight P – Stuff

A drug expert has called for a hard-hitting television education programme to cut methamphetamine use after a massive Customs seizure of pseudoephedrine, which could have been worth $28 million once made into P.

ALCOHOL – USA
Dangers of drinking and driving displayed during Alcohol Awareness Week – The Auburn Plainsman

Students were educated this week on a subject they face every day: alcohol. “SGA wanted to do an Alcohol Awareness Week sometime this semester, especially with the two alcohol-related deaths,” said Clay Parker, SGA senator-at-large.

DRUGS – UK
Iowa Red Ribbon Week - Raising Awareness And Support Of A Drug-free Lifestyle – Medical News Today

Every day and everywhere you go in Iowa, you see people who are in recovery from alcohol or drug abuse. You can’t tell by looking at them, but these are people whose substance abuse created problems for them professionally or personally and they decided to do something about it.

ADDICTION – CANADA
Women’s Addiction Recovery Mediation – Welland Tribune

Women’s Addiction Recovery Mediation (W. A. R. M.) is a non-profit, charitable counseling and referral service for women dealing with the effects of addiction in either themselves or a loved one.

ADDICTION – USA
A Drug Addict’s Life – Drug Addiction is Not Glamorous – Trans World News

A drug addict’s life is an unhappy one. Plagued by mental and physical cravings, their focus in life is the drug- their family becomes secondary, their children are forgotten, their jobs meaningless.

DRUGS – USA
Early Substance Use Influences Future Behavior – Join Together

The use of alcohol or other drugs before the age of 15 increases the likelihood of future adult substance dependency, contracting a sexually transmitted disease, dropping out of school or committing a crime.

ALCOHOL – AUSTRALIA
Millions of Australians want less alcohol advertising – Adelaide Now

MORE than eight million Australians want a reduction in alcohol advertising, with half saying alcohol has had a negative impact on their family, a new study has found.

DRUGS – USA
In Case You Missed It: The New York Times Takes Issue with Anti-Drug Success – Pushing Back

Unsurprisingly, the New York Times Online has taken issue with our efforts to reduce drug use in America.  On their “TierneyLab” blog, John Tierney recently gave our agency a failing grade by claiming drug use has not declined in America.

ALCOHOL – UK
£1m ad campaign targets ‘forgotten’ drinkers – Guardian

A recycling bin full of empty alcohol bottles may be a sign you are drinking too much, a UK charity warned today.

COCAINE – IRELAND
Study finds one in 20 has taken cocaine – Irish Times

ONE IN 20 Irish people and almost one in 10 young people have taken cocaine, a major all-Ireland study of the drug has found.

PAINKILLER – USA
Painkiller Abuse - A growing problem in the military – ABC local News

One of the army’s top pain specialists said the number of prescriptions have jumped by 50-percent since the war in Iraq began. And narcotic painkillers are now the most abused drugs in the military.

DRUGS – USA
Kids Face Rising Risk of Accidental Opiate Overdose – Join Together

New research suggests that the increased availability of prescription opiates like hydrocodone, oxycodone and methadone is responsible for a surge in accidental overdose deaths and injuries among children under the age of 6.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
One Prescription Opiate Can Kill A Child – News Inferno

According to a recent report from the nation’s poison control centers, prescription drug use is endangering the lives of young children who accidentally ingest powerful painkillers.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Prescription drug abuse hits Mo. Army unit hard – USA Today

When Army authorities uncovered the abuse and launched investigations. Thompson and 12 other soldiers were charged with illegally using and distributing prescription drugs. Several others were punished in lesser proceedings.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
When a Child Swallows Prescription Meds – Mom Logic

One of the scariest days of my life, and certainly my lowest moment as a mother, came when my daughter, then 18 months, walked into my bedroom holding out a handful of my husband’s prescription pills.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Hillsborough raising awareness about prescription drug abuse – Scarlet Scuttlebutt
To raise awareness about prescription drug abuse, the Hillsborough Millstone Municipal Alliance has unveiled a replica of a statewide campaign prevention billboard, stating “Who knew Grandma Kept a Stash?” along Route 206.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Prescription drugs: Grim Reaper resides in your medicine cabinet – Salt Lake Tribune

We wrote this piece on Wednesday. By the time it lands in your driveway, the odds are that five Utahns will have perished, that five families will be grieving, children will be orphaned, spouses will be widowed, and parents will be preparing to bury a child, all because of prescription drugs.

ALCOHOL – USA
Early Alcohol Use Causes Big Problems, Even for “Good Kids” – US News and World Report

Society all too often sends a mixed message, on one hand saying that all substance use is harmful for teens, while on the other saying that it’s normal for teens to try drugs and alcohol, and most turn out OK. That makes it easy for parents to think, hey, I’ve got a good kid here, he’ll be OK. Well, maybe not.

ALCOHOL – AUSTRALIA
Alcohol-free zones to be expanded – Sydney Morning Herald

UNRULY drinkers may have fewer places to consume their poisons under a City of Sydney council proposal to restrict widespread alcohol-fuelled antisocial behaviour.

ALCOHOL – UK
Drivers to be given random breath tests – Telegraph

Drivers face random breath testing regardless of how they are driving, under government plans to reduce the number of deaths and serious injuries caused by drink driving.

MARIJUANA – USA
The War on Pot Is a War on Young People – Alter Net

74% of all Americans busted for pot are under 30 - it’s long past time for young people to join ranks and help end this drug war.

METH – USA
Meth use plummets in western Wisconsin – Minneapolis Star Tribune

Analysis shows a law limiting the sale of pseudoephedrine, an ingredient, has contributed to a large decline in the drug’s use.

ALCOHOL – USA
PLCB Honors Winners of 2008 Alcohol Awareness Poster Contest – Market Watch

Contest Promotes Positive Options, Educates about Dangers of Alcohol. Fifty-seven students from 24 school districts have been named by the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board as the winners of the 2008 Alcohol Awareness Poster Contest.

DRUGS – UK
Lifetime Of Health Risk Created By Early Exposure To Drugs, Alcohol – Medical News Today

People who began drinking and using marijuana regularly prior to their 15th birthday face a higher risk of early pregnancy, as well as a pattern of school failure, substance dependence, sexually-transmitted disease and criminal convictions that lasts into their 30s.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Old prescription drop-off fills drums with pills – Mus Chronicle

The stash of unwanted prescription drugs had been languishing in Gunner McPherson’s home for more than a year. She knew flushing the pills — which belonged to her husband who passed away a year ago — could hurt the environment.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Riverside offers prescription pill disposal – Press Enterprise

More than 50 Inland residents gathered their expired prescription drugs and brought them Saturday to a collection point for environmentally safe disposal in what organizers called a first for Southern California.

CODEINE – CANADA
Substance Use Problems – Body and Health Canada

Substance use problems are medical conditions. They are defined as substance use that either interferes with a person’s relationships with family and friends; their ability to fulfill work, school, or family obligations; or results in legal problems and dangerous behaviour.

METH – USA
METH: Deadly drug of choice – East Oregonian

They come into the emergency room trembling and wild-eyed, desperate for anything to help them through the pain of withdrawal.

METH – USA
Sheriff’s office cautions schools, parents about new type of crystal meth – Lancaster Eagle Gazette

It comes in flavors of strawberry, chocolate and peanut butter and looks similar to Pop Rocks candy. But a concoction known to law enforcement officials as “strawberry quick” is anything but an innocent treat for children.

ALCOHOL – UK
DVD helps fight underage drinking – Oxford Times

An anti-alcohol and binge drinking campaign, which started with older teenagers in schools, is now being targeted on 12 to 14-year-olds.

COCAINE – IRELAND
Study finds one in 20 has taken cocaine – Irish Times

ONE IN 20 Irish people and almost one in 10 young people have taken cocaine, a major all-Ireland study of the drug has found.

DRUGS – USA
Drug-Free Work Week – US Department of Labor

Drug-Free Work Week is a dedicated time each year to highlight the benefits that drug-free workplace programs bring to employers, workers and communities. And, it’s a time to work toward making every week a drug-free work week!

METH – USA
New campaign against methamphetamine coming, Madigan says – The Southern

Attorney General Lisa Madigan visited John A. Logan College Tuesday afternoon to discuss progress made against methamphetamine addiction and plans for the future.

PRESCRIPTION – AUSTRALIA
Hillbilly heroin prescriptions on the rise – Live News

The drugs watchdog is cracking down on doctors who prescribe high amounts of ”hillbilly heroin” which is flooding the black market.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Ottawa County sets prescription drug disposal day – Muskegon Chronicle

The Ottawa County Health Department is giving residents there a chance to dispose of unwanted prescription medications free of charge. Ottawa County residents can discard unused drugs from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday at the Resource Recovery Center at 16850 Comstock, Grand Haven Township.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Prescription drug disposal Saturday – Grand Haven Tribune

Bring unused or out-dated medications to the Ottawa County Resource Recovery Service Center, 16850 Comstock St. Personal information should be removed or covered. No illegal drugs, biohazardous material, needles, personal care products or household hazardous waste will be accepted.

METH – USA
Montana Meth Project launches new effort – Montanas News Station
The Montana Meth Project has launched a new statewide petition drive at the Montana’s Teacher’s Conference at the College of Technology in Missoula on Thursday.

ALCOHOL – UK
Women ‘unaware of alcohol threat’ – BBC News

Women do not know about one of the biggest health risks linked to drinking too much - a raised chance of breast cancer, says a survey.

DRUGS – USA
Survey Shows One in Five Adults Misuse Cognitive Enhancing Drugs – Join Together

Poll findings suggest that up to one-fifth of adults may be using prescription drugs like Ritalin “off-label” to increase alertness and mental awareness.

DRUGS – UK
Drug education scam warning – Drug Scope

DrugScope is warning small businesses and schools to be on their guard as a scam involving drug education materials continues to target community-minded individuals.

ADDICTION – CANADA
Cough medicine tested on addicts – National Post

A commonly prescribed drug used in cough medicine is more effective than methadone — and as effective as heroin itself–at stabilizing the lives of heroin addicts and reducing their use of street drugs, a new study says.

DRUGS – UK
Free Public Lecture On Teenage Drug Abuse In Northern Ireland – Medical News Today

More teenagers in Northern Ireland are experimenting with illegal drugs at an earlier age than elsewhere in the UK, according to a new study.

ALCOHOL – USA
More Exercise and Less Alcohol – eFlux Media

It is known that drinking too much increases the risk of diseases such as liver disease, heart disease or even stroke. But a recent study however added a new dangerous disease on the health risk list: breast cancer.

METH – USA
Let’s talk: Strawberry Quick-meth isn’t a problem in area — yet – The Coloradoan

According to an article published in USA Today, drug dealers are also using chocolate, cola, and powered energy drinks to flavor meth. The flavored crystals have been seen in California, Nevada, Washington, Idaho, Texas, New Mexico, Missouri and Minnesota.

MORPHINE – USA
Dextroamphetamine Sulfate Tablets Recalled – Med Page Today

The FDA announced the recall of dextroamphetamine sulfate 5-mg tablets because they may contain as much as twice the labeled amount of active ingredient.

DRUGS – UK
Drug abuse a ’cause not effect’ of social problems – Times Online

Drug or alcohol abuse among children under the age of 15 is a cause and not an effect of a host of health and social problems, research has suggested.

ALCOHOL – USA
Drunken admissions to hospitals triple – Independent

Alcohol-related admissions to two inner London hospitals have tripled in four years.

ADDERALL – USA
Midterms Are Bad For Your Health – College OTR

It’s that time of year again; the time when sleeping in the library becomes acceptable and bags under your eyes means that you put some good hours into studying. It’s the week of midterms and it’s the one time of year that is circled on my calendar that I DON’T get excited about.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Dangers of Sharing Prescription Medication – KERO News

Flu season is coming up and already a few colds are going around. But if your think sharing is caring when it comes to prescription medications, think again. It can be deadly.

METH – USA
Methamphetamine or Cocaine: Which Addiction Is Worse? – Trans World News

As scientists study the effects of illegal drugs on the human body, one fact is becoming clear: Methamphetamine is more physically dangerous than cocaine.

METH – INDIA
Scientists Find Why Methamphetamine is So Addictive and Damaging to Brain – Med India

Scientists have found why the drug methamphetamine is very addictive and damaging to the brain.

ADDICTION – USA
Overcoming drug addiction with an effective drug treatment plan – Trans World News

You know what it’s like to be an addict. The need, the despair, the shame—you’re no stranger to the emotional trauma of substance abuse, and you certainly don’t need a lecture on the perils of drug dependency.

HEROIN – SOUTH AFRICA
New drug mix in the Cape – IOL

Heroin abuse is “increasing drastically and alarmingly” and rehabilitation organizations are having to deal with this problem as well as more younger children becoming addicted to tik.

HEROIN – AUSTRALIA
Details of new Underbelly series revealed – Melbourne Herald Sun

CHANNEL 9 has begun production of the second series of its hit TV crime drama Underbelly, which will follow the booming illegal heroin and marijuana trade of the 1970s and 80s in Sydney and Melbourne.

MORPHINE – USA
Dextroamphetamine Sulfate Tablets Recalled – Med Page Today

The FDA announced the recall of dextroamphetamine sulfate 5-mg tablets because they may contain as much as twice the labeled amount of active ingredient.

DRUGS – UK
Drug abuse a ’cause not effect’ of social problems – Times Online
Drug or alcohol abuse among children under the age of 15 is a cause and not an effect of a host of health and social problems, research has suggested.

ALCOHOL – INDIA
Alcohol effect: Smaller brain volume – Times of India

Researchers in the United States have linked alcohol consumption with cerebral volume, suggesting that the more alcohol an individual drinks, the smaller the is his brain volume.

DRUGS – UK
One in five uses brain boosting drugs – Telegraph

Up to a fifth of adults, including college students and shift workers, may be using the “cognitive enhancers”, a poll of 1,400 by Nature journal suggests.

ADDICTION – USA
Students hear about addiction woes – KTEN News

Lawford discussed the possible fate facing some attending the Oklahoma Outreach Sober School, including the possibility that some will die. But for those willing to find their inner strength, he says there’s boundless hope and possibility.

ADDICTION – UK
Minister leads de-addiction drive – The Press Association

Scotland’s community safety minister has vowed to challenge the belief that drug addiction recovery is “impossible” as he begins a tour to promote the government’s new drugs strategy.

ALCOHOL – UK
The More Alcohol Your Drink The Smaller Your Brain Gets – Medical News Today

The more alcohol an individual drinks, the smaller his or her total brain volume, according to a report in the October issue of Archives of Neurology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

MARIJUANA – USA
Marijuana Use Takes Toll On Adolescent Brain Function, Research Finds – Science Daily

Brain imaging shows that the brains of teens that use marijuana are working harder than the brains of their peers who abstain from the drug.

MARIJUANA – USA
Anti-drug group joins fight against medical marijuana – Detroit Free Press

A team of top national anti-drug officials joined the late-starting campaign to defeat Michigan’s medical marijuana initiative this morning, telling reporters Proposal 1 is a dangerous drug legalization scheme being pushed by outsiders that will lead to higher rates of addiction and despair.

METH – USA
Methamphetamine Enters Brain Quickly and Lingers – Brookhaven National Laboratory

Using positron emission tomography (PET) to track tracer doses of methamphetamine in humans’ brains, scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Brookhaven National Laboratory find that the addictive and long-lasting effects of this increasingly prevalent drug can be explained in part by its pharmacokinetics — the rate at which it enters and clears the brain, and its distribution.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Use of prescription drugs as brain boosters on the rise – Smart Brief

A survey conducted by the journal Nature that involved 1,400 respondents showed that one in five adults take prescription drugs such as Ritalin, Provigil and beta blockers to enhance memory or concentration.

MARIJUANA – USA
Marijuana Abuse and Marijuana Addiction - What Are The Facts? – Trans World News

Recent studies have shown while prescription drug abuse in teens is rising, the most widely abused drug is still - marijuana.

DRUGS – IRELAND
Drugs counselling booklet for parents launched – Drugs.ie
Parents who find their children drunk on alcohol or high on drugs are being urged to stay calm in a new support booklet unveiled today.