Drug News

METHAMPHETAMINE – USA
Methamphetamine tied to schizophrenia: What explains link? – CBS News

Can crystal meth cause madness? Maybe so. Heavy use of methamphetamine is associated with an increased risk for schizophrenia, Canadian researchers say.

HEROIN – USA
Heroin takes heavy toll on users – Seattle Today

Ann Seebeck of Kirkwood visits a tree planted in memory of her son, Chris Seebeck, on Monday Oct. 17, 2011, in Kirkwood Park. Chris Seebeck overdosed in the basement of his parents’ Kirkwood home in 2010 at the age of 27. St. Louis is in the third year of a heroin epidemic that is killing at unprecedented rates.

ALCOHOL ABUSE – USA
November is Alcohol Awareness Month – The Daily Reporter

Alcoholism is a term with multiple and sometimes conflicting definitions. In common and historic usage, alcoholism is any condition that results in the continued consumption of alcoholic beverage, despite health problems and negative social consequences.

HEROIN – USA
Heart attack was really a heroin overdose – WDEL
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Once she was revived, it was discovered the Pennsylvania woman drove her car into the CVS on Delaware Avenue as the result of a heroin overdose.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS/HEROIN – USA
Connecting problems: Heroin and abuse of prescription drugs – Twin Cities Pioneer Press

Before 2000, heroin was a “non-issue” in the state, she says. That’s changed over the last decade, spurred by a “perfect storm” that includes availability here of purer, cheaper heroin and the increased use of prescription painkillers.

PRESCRIPTION DRUG ADDICTION – USA
My Teenager Is A Drug Addict – A Father’s Story – The Patch

“These are not street drugs that have stolen the last two years of my son’s life and put him near death – they are drugs in everyday, ordinary people’s homes that they are leaving exposed and available to our youth in town.”

ALCOHOL ABUSE – UK
Alarm at growing addiction problems among professionals – The Guardian

Experts are calling for urgent action to tackle the “significant challenge” of rising levels of alcoholism and substance abuse among professionals including doctors, dentists and lawyers. Doctors are three times more likely to develop cirrhosis of the liver than the general population.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Prescription meds are becoming stimulants of choice on college campuses – Memphis Commercial Appeal
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Drug abuse on college campuses is no longer limited to binge drinking and illegal drugs. Across the nation, prescription drugs are now the second most-abused drug after marijuana, according to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Prescription Drug Abuse: The New Killer on the Block – Huffington Post

Every 14 minutes a person dies of a drug overdose in the United States. This means more than 35,000 deaths every year, exceeding motor vehicle crashes, homicides and suicides! What once dominated the world of overdoses in the U.S., namely heroin, has been eclipsed by the prescription painkillers.

PRESCRIPTION DRUG ADDICTION – USA
Officials warn of prescription drugs in schools – WVLT

Maryville City school officials worry more kids are abusing prescription pills like Oxycontin, Percocet and Adderall.

DRUG ADDICTION – USA
No shame, only hope, in fighting your child’s drug addiction – Minneapolis Star Tribune

Really, really good kids become addicted to drugs, and really, really good kids lie, cheat and steal to protect that addiction. The change doesn’t happen overnight.

DRUG ADDICTION – UK
Lib Dems to vote to decriminalise all drug use – The Independent

The proposed reform is based on legislation in Portugal, where the personal use of any controlled drug is no longer a criminal offense.

PRESCRIPTION DRUG ADDICTION – USA
Former Judge Richard Baumgartner tells his story of drug use – WBIR-TV

Drug addiction can happen to anyone. A criminal court judge for more than a decade, Richard Baumgartner was a family face at community function focused on the prevention of crime and drugs. However, the shocking revelation of his own addiction forced him to step down from the bench.

PRESCRIPTION DRUG ADDICTION – USA
Michael Jackson’s doctor sued for fueling his drug addiction – Star Lounge

Michael Jackson’s dermatologist Arnold Klein has been accused of fueling the pop star’s addiction to prescription drugs.

ALCOHOL ABUSE – USA
Army hiring more counselors for alcohol abuse – ‎The Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — The army is increasing its staff of substance abuse counselors by about 30 percent to help the rising number of troops with alcohol problems.

ALCOHOL ABUSE – USA
What Parents Should Know About Party Schools – LifeGoesStrong

Headline-grabbing is list of top party schools put out by Princeton Review inevitably draws protests from administrators at the “winning” schools and probably lots of interest from potential students. But most parents look at this list in horror – as they should. You’re paying a fortune for your kid to get an education, not for partying.

PRESCRIPTION DRUG ADDICTION – USA
Unscrupulous pain clinic operators give good doctors a bad rap – Knoxville News Sentinel

Every month for two years, Freddie McMahan would get in his Lincoln LS and drive to a nearby pain clinic, where a doctor would prescribe him a cocktail of narcotic drugs. Initial prescriptions for codeine and Demerol to treat McMahan’s scoliosis eventually led to large amounts of OxyContin, Xanax and morphine. By the third week of his month’s supply, McMahan would run out, leaving him scrambling to get his fix somewhere else or go into withdrawal.

METHAMPHETAMINE – USA
Our view: All must join war to put meth labs out of business – Utica Observer Dispatch

It’s time to go to war. Looking the other way is no longer an option because the losers in this fight could very well be your neighbors, your friends or even your own family. This war is against methamphetamine. Perhaps it’s being made right now in a home near yours. Methamphetamine is ugly. Users inject it, smoke it, snort it or swallow it. It affects the central nervous system, and is highly addictive. Results: Anxiety, psychotic and violent behavior, paranoia and brain damage. Addicts can die from continued use, if not before.

HEROIN – GLOBAL
WikiLeaks cables: ‘Taliban treats heroin stocks like savings accounts’ – The Guardian

The United Nations’ drugs czar told Nato that Afghan insurgents were withholding thousands of tonnes of heroin and treating their drugs like “savings …

METH LAB – USA
Hawkins deputies wrangle monkeys at meth lab raid – Kingsport Times News ‎

The Hawkins County Sheriff’s Office is well trained and experienced in a variety of meth lab scenarios, but they entered …

COCAINE, HEROIN – AUSTRALIA
Sailors use Navy ships to ‘import cocaine, heroin’ – ABC Online ‎

The Navy has been rocked by allegations of an organized drug ring, with claims that kilos of cocaine and heroin have been brought …

METHAMPHETAMINE – USA
Polk County Narcotics Enforcement Team respond to meth lab explosion – Examiner.com ‎

On the evening of December 17, 2010, the Polk County Police Department was called to the scene of a meth lab explosion at 2050 Old Cedartown Road, …

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – FLORIDA
Detectives investigate doctors in prescription-abuse fight – Orlando Sentinel ‎

But, authorities say, the probes are necessary to help curb the state’s prescription-drug-abuse epidemic and help stop overdoses in Central Florida. …

ECSTASY – UK
THIS is the huge haul of dangerous drugs seized by police after raids in South Tyneside – Jarrow & Hebburn Gazette‎

The pills are part of a potentially fatal batch of club drug Ecstasy that left five people in hospital after taking the pills on Saturday night. …

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
‘Smart drug’ abuse rising on Wisconsin campuses – WisconsinWatch.org

However, he cautions the actual number of students suffering from prescription drug abuse is greater than the number seeking help.

ALCOHOL – USA
How to have a less boozy holiday – Times LIVE ‎

The US-based National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism offers some common sense guidelines for keep your drinking in check. …

HEROIN – USA
Heroin ‘junkie’ thanks cops after arrest – Madison.com

A heroin addict who told police he shoots up three times a day was thankful after his arrest early Sunday morning, Madison police reported. …

HEROIN – USA
Now a Lawyer, Once a Heroin Addict – CBS News

Jeff Glor reports on the story of a reformed heroin addict who earned his GED behind bars and a law degree after being released. Rick Dyer, 58, …

METHAMPHETAMINE – USA
Farnham: ‘Shoot every meth head,’ but don’t take away my Sudafed – Pulaski County Daily News

Pseudoephedrine is the main component to make meth and several Missouri communities have already instituted a prescription only policy through local …

METHAMPHETAMINE – WORLD
Meth Project Named Third Most Effective Philanthropy In the World – Business Wire

Meth Project Founder Thomas M. Siebel Recognized on Annual List of “25 Best Givers” and Commended for Significantly Reducing Meth Use

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Are students turning to Adderall to get A’s? – The Massachusetts Daily Collegian

“I love Adderall,” she added. “I love it. I can write papers in, like, an hour and a half; I don’t eat all day and then I’ll smoke weed, get really retarded, and it’s so fun.”

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
NY bust: Medicaid patients’ Rx drugs go to dealers – The Associated Press

The report examined Medicaid abuse in New York, California, Illinois, North Carolina and Texas, high-volume states in Medicaid prescription drug payments. …

SYNTHETIC MARIJUANA – USA
DEA targets synthetic marijuana – WPDE

“They’ve placed it in a category right alongside heroin, right alongside marijuana, right alongside ecstasy or other club drugs. in other words there are no …

COCAINE – ITALY
Python found guarding cocaine – UPI.com

Police in Italy said they had to evade a white python to plant listening devices near the cocaine stash of a drug ring in the Neapolitan Camorra …

ADDICTION – NETHERLANDS
Teenage cannabis addiction on the rise – Expatica

The number of Dutch under-18s addicted to cannabis is on the increase. Many of them begin smoking pot regularly at age thirteen, and get into such difficulties that they have to be admitted to a rehab clinic.

COCAINE – USA
Cocaine’s detrimental effect on the cardiovascular system – Staten Island Advance

After marijuana, cocaine is the second most used illicit drug in the United States. It has been shown to have many detrimental effects; many of these effects involve the heart.

COCAINE – USA
DEA Warns of Tainted Cocaine; But it’s Government’s Fault – Opposing Views

This week the federal government warned that “substantial levels of cocaine” may be contaminated by levasimole hydrochloride, an anti-parasitic agent used in animals that kills white blood cells, leaving people vulnerable to potentially fatal infections.

COCAINE – USA
Crack Cocaine: Danville’s drug of choice – Madison Messenger

Crack cocaine breaks all social, economic and racial barriers as dealers supply addicts in affluent neighborhoods and impoverished housing projects.

METHADONE – USA
Oklahoma authorities say methadone use on the rise – KFSM News

Oklahoma authorities say the number of people dying from methadone use is growing. Last year, 110 people in Oklahoma died from either methadone overdoses or overdoses in which methadone was used in combination with other drugs.

ADDICTION – USA
Russia Heroin Addiction “Spreads Like Wildfire” – Addiction Inbox

Last week, both the New York Times and the Los Angeles Times declared that heroin addiction has reached epidemic proportions in Russia. However, Soviet drug enforcement officials have a plan: They have called on the United States to defoliate Afghanistan.

ADDERALL – USA
Adderall abuse not worth it in the long run – Chicago Flame

Now that the semester is well underway all us students have reached that big hurdle of surviving the first round of exams for the classes we have. Even though the college life is a high-pressure lifestyle many students are capable of making the grade through honest studying and dedication.

HEROIN – USA
Young and Suburban, and Falling for Heroin – New York Times

The kids weren’t all right. They lived in the same comfortable Long Island town and were barely in their teens when they took their first hit of marijuana or sip of alcohol, propelling them on dark journeys they couldn’t seem to escape. Within a couple of years, they were in heroin’s grip.

METH – USA
First visible sign of meth use is rotten teeth – The Payson Roundup

What continuous or extended use of meth does to your mouth is permanent and cannot be “naturally repaired.” “Meth Mouth” has been so well documented, references are showing up in current fiction novels.

METH – USA
New Methamphetamine Addiction Treatment Promising – Trans World News

Methamphetamine is a white, odorless, bitter-tasting crystalline powder that easily dissolves in water or alcohol and is taken orally, intra-nasally (snorting the powder), by needle injection, or by smoking.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Kenmore: Hospital reclaims unused prescription pills – Tonawanda News

Modern medicine is working day and night to give mankind a pill to cure just about everything, but when used or disposed of improperly those same drugs can do even more harm.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Prescription pill-popping soars among white-collar Victorians – The Age

Addiction to prescription painkillers is soaring, with the number of Victorians being treated in hospital emergency departments more than doubling in the past five years.

DRUGS – USA
End Drug Abuse And Get Your Life Back – Trans World News

Statistics state that over 28 million adults and young people are abusing drugs. You do not have to become a part of this statistic, but if you already are there is help.

METH – USA
Cheaper and easier way to make meth moves into Wythe and Smyth counties – WSLS News

State police are worried about a growing drug trend they’re just starting to see in our area. It’s called the “shake-and-bake.”

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Unwanted prescription drugs collected – WIVB News

A program aimed at helping the environment took place in Niagara County on Saturday. The cars kept coming and going. They were all doing their part to recycle unwanted pharmaceuticals.

ALCOHOL – USA
Your Opinion: Stop teens’ access to alcohol – Battle Creek Enquirer

According to scientific research, most teens who drink obtain alcohol from social sources. This means they are sneaking alcohol from their parents’ homes; having older friends buy it; or are obtaining it at parties.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Prescription Drug Abuse Hits Campuses Hard – Trans World News

Many campuses nationwide are taking prescription drug abuse seriously. “Aderall, Ritalin, and other prescription drugs are being abused at an alarming rate,” comments Mary Rieser, Executive Director of The Atlanta Recovery Center. “We have seen an increase in the past few years of college students seeking help for their prescription drug addiction.

ALCOHOL – AUSTRALIA
Alcohol Awareness Study 2009 – Salvation Army

The results from this study suggest that the awareness of the consequences of underage drinking, as set out in the NHMRC guidelines, is low amongst Australians and in particular, young people.

ALCOHOL – UK
Alcohol misuse: tackling the UK epidemic – British Medical Association

A term of common use and variable meaning, generally taken to refer to chronic continual drinking or periodic consumption of alcohol which is characterized by impaired control over drinking, frequent episodes of intoxication, preoccupation with alcohol, and the use of alcohol despite adverse consequences.

ALCOHOL – UK
Alcohol firms not encouraging underage drinking despite growth in online ads – Guardian

Despite a doubling in the amount of alcohol ads running online, advertisers are not breaking marketing restrictions designed to protect under-18s, according to a report from the advertising regulator.

METH – USA
Report: Iowa meth and marijuana on rise – Mason City Globe Gazette

Iowa’s top state drug enforcement official says Iowa is not ready for medical marijuana, meth is making a comeback, and the newest drug threat is lurking in your medicine cabinet.

ALCOHOL – UK
Focus: Drunk and disorderly – Times Online

Just in case you missed it, this week was supposed to herald the start of a new dawn of moderation and temperance among Scotland’s drinkers.

METH – USA
‘Shake-N-Bake’ Meth Dangerous – Fort Smith Times Record

Clandestine methamphetamine labs referred to as “Shake-n-Bake” are cropping up across the country, but have yet to become a prevalent problem in local areas.

ADDERALL – USA
Up to 25% of college students use stimulants to get by – Examiner

Anyone who has gone to college knows students must balance an active social life with studying, and sleep. College students in their prime, meet people, make connections–and in the end, the physiological need for sleep can sometimes prevent simple studying and class attendance.

ADDICTION – USA
Addiction recovery group now meets in Edmond – Edmond Sun

You know you have a drug addiction. But you don’t know where to get help. One option to consider is Edmond Drug Addicts Anonymous, a new 12-step recovery group. Group members want to reach individuals who may be suffering from an addiction.

ADDICTION – USA
Addiction recovery and nutritional supplements – Examiner

It is a time to help people understand that substance abuse is a health crisis on a national scale. It is also important to recognize that a person suffering from addiction can be treated and that recovery is possible.

OXYCOTIN – USA
How to tell if someone is abusing Oxycontin or other pain medications – Examiner

Most Americans have recently become familiar with the relatively new pharmaceutical drug Oxycontin. This powerful opioid painkiller has become very popular on the streets as a drug of abuse, though Heroin is still very much available and in demand.

PAINKILLER – HONG KONG
Painkiller Tylenol recalled – Health and Community

Jacobson Medical (Hong Kong) is recalling Tylenol Extended Relief Tab 650mg as the painkiller has been sold in unregistered packages, the Department of Health said today.

ALCOHOL – USA
Binge Drinkers Often Drive Drunk, Researchers Say – Join Together

A study of 14,000 binge drinkers found that 12 percent admitted driving after their most recent episode of heavy alcohol consumption.

COCAINE – USA
Cocaine Cutting Agent Leads to Illness – Join Together

Drug users who ingested cocaine cut with a substance called levamisole have contracted a blood disease known as agranulocytosis in Massachusetts and other states.

COCAINE – USA
Dramatic rise in cocaine addiction – RTE News

There has been a dramatic increase in the number of people treated for cocaine addiction, according to figures released by the Health Research Board.

DRUGS – UK
Blueprint Drugs Education: The Response of Pupils and Parents to the Programme – Home Office

The Blueprint drug education programme was an evidence-based, multi-component programme that was piloted in 23 schools in England during the spring terms of 2004 and 2005.

ALCOHOL – UK
Drink a factor in surgery deaths – BBC News

Alcohol abuse was a factor in the deaths of one in 15 patients who died in hospitals last year while under the care of surgeons, figures have shown.

DRUGS – UK
Kicking the habit of drug-driving – Times Online

Taking up two parking spaces would be considered bold. But three? Well, that is a little reckless, given the circumstances. With a flourish, G-Star brings his Subaru Impreza to a diagonal halt in the temporary police car park, composes an expression somewhere between hurt innocence and pliant confusion, and blows into the Breathalyser.

ALCOHOL – USA
National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month – Addiction Inbox

Recovery Month, an annual September observance highlighting the benefits of substance abuse treatment, kicked off on August 31 when President Obama issued a proclamation.

METH – USA
Feds plan $9 million ad campaign to fight meth in MO, elsewhere – Kansas City Star

It’ll run now through November and appear on TV, in newspapers, online and on billboards. Missouri (but not Kansas) was one of 16 states that were deemed to have the worst meth rates in the nation.

METH – USA
Missouri no longer alone in meth fight – Missouri Net

Missouri has the dubious distinction of being the methamphetamine capital of the country and largely has been left to fight meth on its own. That, though, is changing. National attention has come to the fight against meth.

ALCOHOL – USA
Russian Leader Set to Tackle Nation’s Drinking Problem – Join Together

Russian President Dmitri Medvedev, who calls alcoholism a “national calamity,” plans to work with the nation’s parliament this fall to tackle the country’s drinking problem by proposing an increase in taxes, stricter labeling laws, and restrictions on where alcohol can be sold.

MARIJUANA – USA
Male Sexual Problems Caused by Marijuana Use, Study Says – Join Together

Men who smoke marijuana may have more problems achieving orgasm during sex than abstainers, according to a new Australian study.

DRUGS – USA
After Drug Rehab, Is Relapse A Part Of Recovery? – Press Release

While many schools of thought point to relapse rates of up to 60%, there is one drug treatment program that defies the odds when helping addicts recover from addiction.

ADDICTION – USA
Celebration to be held for those who have overcome addictions – South Carolina News

Coastal Recovery Center is planning a special event to increase awareness of addictions, treatment, and recovery in Myrtle Beach. According to a news release from Coastal Recovery Center, the event will celebrate people in recovery from addiction with their inspiring testimonies of their changed lives.

ADDICTION – USA
Addiction Recovery Celebration Scheduled for Durham – My NC

The Durham Center will team this month with Partnership for a Healthy Durham, Duke University Health System, Urban Ministries of Durham, El Centro Hispano and DurhamTRY to hold its fourth annual Recovery Celebration Block Party as part of National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month.

METH – USA
Anti-meth ads seek to show addiction’s toll on Oklahomans – News OK

New anti-methamphetamine ads start this month and target Oklahoma and 15 other states, the White House drug czar said Tuesday.

ADDERALL – USA
Keep those pills in shape – Fierce Pharma Manufacturing

B arr Labs initiated a recall in mid-August for generic Adderall tablets that may contain too much of the active pharmaceutical ingredients dextroamphetamine and dl-amphetamine, posing a superpotency risk to users of the ADHD drug.

HEROIN – IRELAND
Use of heroin and cocaine still rising, report finds –Irish Times

Heroin and cocaine use continues to rise throughout Ireland, a new study by the Health Research Board shows.

DRUGS – USA
Substance Abuse Treatment Advisory: Emerging Issues in the Use of Methadone Spring 2009 – Docuticker

This Advisory presents current information on the increase in deaths related to methadone, particulary in combination with other substances or some medications.

ADDICTION – USA
Addiction to prescription drugs a big problem in area – WWL TV News

Addiction to prescription pain medication has been in the news lately with the death of Michael Jackson. Local doctors say this area has one of the highest rates of prescription addiction in the country.

DRUGS – USA
College Kids Drug Abuse Study Time – Trans World News

6.4 percent of college students reported having used Adderall for nonmedical use in 2006 and 2007, according to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health. Adderall is usually prescribed to treat attention-deficit disorder.

ALCOHOL – IRELAND
LIMITING THE EXPOSURE OF YOUNG PEOPLE TO ALCOHOL ADVERTISING – Department of Health & Children

On behalf of the Alcohol Marketing Communications Monitoring Body, I am pleased to present our Third Annual Report (for 2008) to the Minister for Health and Children.

DRUGS – UK
Nearly 1 in 10 Scots admits driving after taking drugs – The Scotsman

Motorists in Scotland are the most likely in the UK to get behind the wheel after taking drugs – but the least likely to drink and drive.

ALCOHOL – IRELAND
Alcohol addiction – The industry must share the burden – Irish Examiner

In recent years there has been much hype about our drugs problems, but usually when people talk about drugs, they are not talking about the most prevalent and most abused drug in the country – alcohol. Irish people spend more on alcohol annually that any other people.

ALCOHOL – IRELAND
Alcohol a factor in 50% of youth crime – Irish Examiner

Alcohol is a critical factor in about half of all recorded juvenile crime, according to a report.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Pain relief can spiral into addiction to prescription drugs – CNN International

People who abuse prescription drugs often do so believing the pills are safe because they are prescribed by doctors and approved by the Food and Drug Administration, addiction experts tell CNN.

ALCOHOL – USA
Canadian Bars Require ID Swipes, Create Blacklist – Join Together

Some bars in Victoria, British Columbia are requiring patrons to swipe their ID cards, then using the data collected to compile and enforce a blacklist of customers who previously have been involved in fights, been kicked out of other bars, or are involved in gangs.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
New database to help combat prescription drug abuse – South Lincoln County News

While media attention has been focused on the methamphetamine epidemic, prescription drug abuse has been increasing. Nationally, the non-medical use of prescription drugs is higher than the abuse of cocaine, heroin and hallucinogens combined.