Drug News

Meth – Oklahoma
Meth lab found in toddler’s backpack – UPI.com

TULSA, Okla., Aug. 11 (UPI) — Oklahoma police say they arrested the parents of a 2-year-old girl after finding meth lab materials in the toddler’s backpack.

Underage Drinking – USA
Declining Youth Exposure To Alcohol Ads In Magazines – Medical News TODAY

Youth exposure to alcohol advertising in magazines declined by 48 percent between 2001 and 2008, according to a new study by the Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth (CAMY) at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Binge Drinking – USA College Students
Changing Student Perceptions Can Reduce Alcohol Abuse – About.com:Alcoholism

Many college students drink excessively because they believe “everyone” is doing it. But when they find out that most students do not binge drink and the heavy drinkers are in the minority, they will reduce their own harmful drinking. When they discover that their behavior is not “normal” they modify their behavior.

Drunk Driving – New York
NYC mother pleads guilty in fatal crash – UPI.com

NEW YORK, Aug. 11 (UPI) — A 32-year-old New York woman has pleaded guilty to 16 counts for crashing a carload of girls while driving drunk, killing one of them.

Cough and Cold Medicine Abuse – USA Teens
Teen Drug Abuse of Cough and Cold Medicine – WebMD

If you’re raising a teenager and you don’t know much about DXM or cough medicine abuse, you’re hardly alone. DXM, or dextromethorphan, is a common ingredient in cough and combination cold medicines. Teens, however, have found another use for cough medicine — getting high. Taking huge doses of cough medicine to get high may sound revolting. In fact, you might assume it’s just an obscure fringe thing.

Liquid Cocaine – UK
Drug smuggler jailed over rum death – Press Association Ltd.

A drug smuggler has been jailed for 20 years for the manslaughter of a taxi driver who died after unwittingly drinking pure liquid cocaine from a rum bottle.

Drugging Children – USA
Drugging Children: Unrecognized Form of Child Abuse? – abc NEWS / Health

Mom Accidentally Poisons Child With Cough Meds; Researcher Sees Problem as Child Abuse

Drug Smuggling Attempts Blocked – Arizona
Agents thwart 6 drug smuggling attempts on border - Associated Press

NOGALES, Ariz. (AP) — Agents at the Nogales port of entry in southeastern Arizona say they stopped six separate drug smuggling attempts over the weekend.

Cocaine Smuggling – USA
Moscow criticizes extradition of pilot to US – 9&10 News

MOSCOW (AP) — Russia has criticized the arrest of a Russian pilot in Liberia by U.S. intelligence agents for alleged smuggling of South American cocaine.

Musicians Ban Alcohol – UK
Take That ban alcohol on tour – Thaindian News

London, July 22 (ANI): Members of the English pop band Take That have decided to ban backstage booze when they start their tour in 2011.

Heroin – Florida
Drug ring member allegedly smuggled heroin – UPI.com

MIAMI, July 22 (UPI) — A Colombian drug ring’s senior member, extradited to the United States, was charged in Miami with smuggling heroin, court records indicated.

Risky Drinking – USA
Caffeine and Alcohol: A New Fad With a Bad Buzz – The Huffington Post

Red Bull, Rock Star, Jolt, Monster, Amp — heard of these beverages? As the summer sun blazes, and late night parties abound, there are a lot of sleepy folks out there reaching for energy boosting drinks to get through the day. And if that was not enough caffeine for you, when it’s time to hit the bar scene, move over Carrie Bradshaw and the girlie Cosmo — the beverage of choice at local hot spots is blending high caffeinated drinks like Red Bull with vodka. The common belief is that “You can dance all night on Red Bull cocktails.”

Cough and Cold Medication Abuse – American Teens
American Society Of Anesthesiologists Helps Parents Identify Over-the-Counter Drug Abuse In Children – Medical News TODAY

Nearly 10 percent of American teens have admitted to getting high on cough medication containing a synthetic drug, dextromethorphan (DXM), which produces a hallucinogenic high when consumed in large amounts.1 Teens and tweens ranging in age from as young as nine to 17 have admitted to Robo tripping, oftentimes because it is legal, readily available - without a prescription - and inexpensive.

Drug and Alcohol Abuse – California High School
Truancy leading to sky high drug and alcohol use at Berkeley High, study says. – Contra Costa Times

A lack of lunchtime supervision of Berkeley High School students at a nearby park and no policy to hold parents accountable for truancy are contributing to sky-high rates of alcohol and drug abuse among teens, according to a new report.

Drug Violence – Mexico
Mexico’s drug violence leads schools to teach students to dodge bullets – azcentral.com

MEXICO CITY - Schools across Mexico are teaching students to dive to the floor and cover their heads as urban gunfights between drug gangs multiply in the violence-torn country.

Marijuana Legalization Issues – California
Marijuana use in California may double if legal: Study – Thaindian News

Washington, July 8 (ANI): Legalizing marijuana could bring down the price of the drug and encourage sales in California, says a new study.

Crack Cocaine – Iowa
Jaywalking Arrest Leads To Drug Conviction – KCCI.com

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa — A jaywalking violation has led to an eight-year prison sentence for a Minnesota man who was found to be carrying crack cocaine in a pocket.

ER Visits for Drug Overdose – USA
Avera Medical Minute: Drug Overdose Emergencies Live 7/7/10 – KSFY.com

Which drug most often sends a person to the ED? It may not be the ones you think.  Common prescription drugs are often the ones being abused.  Dr. Kimberlee McKay explains why prescription drug abuse is up and which drugs are the most likely to be abused.

Drug Trafficking – USA
Michael Douglas In ‘Vanity Fair’: I Put Career Over Fathering Cameron – The Huffington Post

Michael Douglas covers the new Vanity Fair and inside he opens up about his son Cameron, who faces at least ten years in prison for trafficking meth, and trying to get fatherhood right the second time around with his family with Catherine Zeta-Jones.

Marijuana – USA
AP IMPACT: Drug Gangs Taking Over US Public Lands – abcNEWS/U.S.

Not far from Yosemite’s waterfalls and in the middle of California’s redwood forests, Mexican drug gangs are quietly commandeering U.S. public land to grow millions of marijuana plants and using smuggled immigrants to cultivate them.

Drug Overdose – USA
Three Cave Creek girls sent to hospital for overdose – azcentral.com

Three middle-school girls in Cave Creek were transported to a hospital Friday afternoon, after they apparently overdosed on Tylenol cold medicine while at school, according to Deputy Chief Frank Salomon of the Phoenix Fire Department.

Drunk Driving – Australia
90-year-old loses licence for speeding, drunk driving – Thaindian News

Melbourne, Feb 28 (IANS) A 90-year-old man lost his driving licence in Australia’s Victoria state after he was clocked over-speeding and detected with double the alcohol limit, police said.

Meth – USA
Great-grandmother gets 5 years on meth charges – The Associated Press

A Northern California great-grandmother has been sentenced to prison after being convicted on methamphetamine charges.

Heroin – USA
Abington Heights drug policy working, officials say, but heroin problem remains – thetimes-tribune.com

Two years after Abington Heights School District officials began responding to a growing heroin problem, statistics show a slight drop in the number of students in trouble over drug and alcohol abuse.

Prescription Drugs – Canada
Addiction often starts in hospital – Leader-Post

Prescription drugs are suspected in the death of singer Michael Jackson. If the toxicology report from the autopsy confirms this, he joins a growing number of people falling victim to prescription-drug abuse.

Prescription Drugs – USA
More Americans taking drugs for mental illness – Leader-Post

In America, 73 percent more adults and 50 percent more children are using drugs to treat mental illness than in 1996.

Ecstasy – USA
Obama Ecstasy Pills Hit the Streets – CBS News

Police in Texas have seized a batch of Ecstasy pills that are shaped in the image of President Barack Obama (see photos). Because Ecstasy is not a prescription drug, but manufactured only illegally, it comes in a wide variety of shapes and sizes.

Alcohol – USA
NFL Seeks Limits on Tailgating to Curb Drinking – Join Together

The National Football League (NFL) would like teams to limit tailgating to 3-1/2 hours prior to kickoff, but so far only the Kansas City Chiefs and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have adopted such a policy.

Methamphetamine – San Diego, CA
Border Officials See Increase In Seized Drugs – 10news.com

The amount methamphetamine seized by U.S. Border Patrol agents in the San Diego sector skyrocketed in fiscal 2009, while the number of illegal immigrants caught dropped 27 percent, federal officials said Wednesday.

Drugs – USA
Deputies use backhoe to find drugs in septic tank – The Boston Globe

Flushed evidence doesn’t go far if your toilet’s on a septic system. DeSoto Parish sheriff’s Lt. Toni Joe Morris said Tuesday that deputies brought in a backhoe when drug agents raided a home and business and met the owner coming out of a bathroom.

Cough Medicine – San Francisco, CA USA
Teens’ abuse of cough medications soaring – SFGate.com - San Francisco Chronicle

Teenage abuse of common cough medications has grown ominously in recent years, according to San Francisco researchers who found a fifteenfold increase in calls to poison control centers since 1999 for teens made sick by overdosing on household drugs that can cause hallucinogenic highs.

Ecstasy – UK
Ecstasy harms brain on first use, study finds – Guardian.co.uk

People who use ecstasy for the first time could suffer impaired memory and harm to their brains, a new study of the dance drug’s effects reveals.

Alcohol – World News
Cruise Liner Slammed for Introducing ‘All You can Drink’ Packages – MedIndia

A major cruise liner has come under fire for encouraging passengers to consume alcohol by introducing “all you can drink” packages.

Alcohol – USA
Courts Urged To Make More Use Of Ankle Bracelets To Monitor Alcohol Offenders During The Holiday Season – Medical News Today

A company that makes personal electronic alcohol monitors that secure to the ankle like a bracelet, is urging courts in the US to make more use of the devices over the holiday season, when there is usually a peak in the rate of alcohol-related offenses.

Prescription Drugs – USA
Many teens share prescription drugs: Study – Leader-Post

Many teenagers may be sharing their prescription medications with their friends, putting them at risk of drug side effects or having a health problem go undiagnosed, a new survey finds.

Alcohol – UK
Mixing Alcohol And Sex Puts Young People At Risk – Medical News Today

Drinking alcohol increases the chances of young people taking risks, including with their sexual health, according to new research from alcohol charity Drinkaware and sexual health charity Brook…

Underage Drinking – Peoria, IL USA
88 ticketed at underage drinking party – PJStar.com

Eighty-eight underage revelers - 70 of them Bradley University students - were cited at an underage drinking party held at a college-owned rental home early Sunday.

Meth – USA
Meth labs abundant this hunting season – USA Today

Hunters stalking deer and pheasant also are finding methamphetamine labs or their remnants in remote areas this fall.

Cannabis – UK
Cannabis ‘affecting young minds’ – BBC News

Half of young people using cannabis suffer side effects such as paranoia and blackouts, a UK survey suggests.

Cough Medicine – USA
Youths risk death in latest drug abuse trend – USAToday.com

Emergency rooms and schools across the nation are reporting that waves of youths are overdosing on non-prescription cough and cold medicines that are widely available in drugstores and supermarkets.

Prescriptions – USA
Sharing Prescriptions Can Bring Harm, Not Healing – U.S. News & World Report

Sharing prescription medication with a family member or friend who needs care may seem like the right thing to do, even an act of kindness. But new research highlights the potential hazards of passing these medicines around.

DRUGS – CANADA
Local substance abuse meetings prove a success – Revelstoke Times Review

A series of presentations by Dan Reist of the Centre for Addictions Research of BC, an organization based at the University of Victoria, drew a solid turnout this week.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Silent Killer: prescription drug overdoses killing more people than car accidents, shootings, or stabbings – WPEC TV News

“There are more people in this county that die of drug overdose deaths than die from homicide, suicide and motor vehicle fatalities,” said Palm Beach County Sheriff’s detective Gary Martin, who oversees all investigations of overdose deaths.

DRUGS – USA
Abuse of over-the-counter cold medications top methamphetamine – Press Enterprise

Cough and cold medicines are available at any grocery or drug store, but parents and teens shouldn’t think they’re completely safe, says Deb Beckwith, a contractor with La Vista Prevention Services in Hemet.

METH – USA
Salt Lake PD launches new ads for Meth Initiative Campaign – KSL TV News

The Salt Lake City Police Department’s Meth Initiative has launched a new public awareness advertising campaign for 2009. Revolving around the “know more… kNOw DRUGS” theme, the ads started appearing on UTA buses and TRAX trains this month.

ALCOHOL – USA
Alcohol may increase breast cancer risk – Tampa Bay News

Researchers say it’s a level of consumption that has been associated with low risk of harm. But many previous studies have found that alcohol appears to increase not only breast cancer, but other cancers as well.

ALCOHOL – FRANCE
France moves to ban sale of alcohol to minors – International Herald Tribune

French lawmakers passed an amendment Monday to ban the sale of alcohol to minors, part of an effort to tackle the rise of binge drinking in a country known for a relaxed attitude toward a little libation.

ALCOHOL – USA
France moves to ban sale of alcohol to minors – Houston Chronicle

The change, if passed in its final form, could mark the beginning of a cultural shift. The French are among the world’s top consumers of wine but proud of their tradition of moderation. And some give their children watered wine with dinner from a young age.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Rx drug abuse a teen epidemic here – Staten Island Advance

At first glance, the numbers seem jarring — 21,000 prescription painkillers put into the hands of teens and young adults, bought and sold by a makeshift cabal of nearly two dozen Staten Islanders, most in their early 20s.

PAINKILLER – DENMARK
More girls attempt suicide with painkillers – Copenhagen Post

New figures from the National Patient Registry obtained by Politiken newspaper show a substantial increase in the number of teenage girls being admitted to hospital after an overdose of painkillers.

METHADONE – USA
Spike in Methadone Prescriptions, Deaths – Join Together
Methadone now ranks as the fastest-growing source of narcotic deaths in the country, and many experts believe lack of federal oversight and dangerous prescribing practices by physicians are largely to blame.

ALCOHOL – USA
England Broadens Estimate of Alcohol-Related Deaths – Join Together

Researchers in England have discovered that by looking at the prevalence of deaths related to alcohol use in a different way, the national numbers they arrive at are close to double what officials in the country previously have cited.

HEROIN – USA
Heroin Abuse Up for Many Ohio Youth – Join Together

An increase in treatment admissions for heroin abuse among young people in Ohio is being attributed to problems that often start with prescription drug abuse.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Parents’ prescription drugs pose risk to teens – San Francisco Chronicle

Parents who don’t safeguard their medications are putting their teenagers at serious risk of addiction to prescription drugs, according to a national survey.

ADDICTION – INDIA
Drug addiction of prescribed drugs increasing in teenagers – Top News

Previous studies have shown that prescription drugs can take life if not handled properly. Despite the alarm raised by various government authorities against the misuse of prescription drugs, these drugs are easily available to teenagers.

METHADONE – USA
More and More Deaths Because of Methadone Overdoses –

Methadone is a form of opium but is cheaper and longer lasting. The drug is a powerful painkiller and despite its curing of millions of people it has also increased the death rate because of the overdoses or the combination with other drugs.

METHADONE – INDIA
Methadone a double-edged painkiller – domain-B
The drug is a synthetic form of opium that is a long lasting and powerful pain reliever. Being cost effective, it has helped millions of people, but is also one of the fastest growing cause of narcotic deaths in the US.

METHADONE – USA
Methadone Use as Painkiller Raises, Methadone-Related Deaths As Well – eFluxMedia

The number of narcotic-related deaths has increased lately forcing the US Food and Drug Administration to take quick measures. However, the agency is facing major problems, as the use of methadone has been extended.

PAINKILLER – USA
Home tests help parents monitor drug use – Daily Times

Marijuana, cocaine, methamph-etamine and Ecstacy. These are the drugs that most likely come to mind when hearing the word “addiction.” But some addictive drugs come straight from a prescription bottle.

METHADONE – USA
Methadone Overdose a Growing Problem – News Inferno

Once mainly used to treat heroin addiction, Methadone is being prescribed by family doctors, osteopaths, and nurse practitioners for some types of severe pain. Methadone, a synthetic form of opium, is powerful, cheap, and long lasting.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Attorney general warns of prescription drug abuse – Peninsula Daily News

There’s a drug that works like heroin, can kill like heroin, and is found in a lot of homes on and off the North Olympic Peninsula. The stuff has made its way into high schools and become a “huge problem,” Washington Attorney General Rob McKenna told the Sequim Sunrise Rotary Club on Friday.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Teens and Prescription Medications and Other Health News – US News and World Report

An increasing number of teens say they have an easier time obtaining prescription medications illegally than buying beer, cigarettes, or marijuana.

ADDICTION – USA
All You Need To Know About Alcohol Addiction & Treatment – Trans World News

If you or your loved one is suffering from alcohol addiction then you are reading the right article. In this article you can get enough information alcohol treatment and rehabilitation. Addiction can be treated if the person decides to get rid of this problem. You have to do some research for finding the right alcohol treatment center.

DRUGS – CUBA
US Teens Have Easy Access to Drugs – Prensa Latina

An increasing number of US teens gets, illegally, medicines that should be obtained under prescription, something considered in the threshold of consuming drugs like heroine, said a research revealed on Thursday.

PRESCRIPTION – CANADA
Survey Finds Teens Have Easy Access to Prescription Drugs – Chatter Shmatter

Gaining access to dangerous prescription drugs is becoming easier than buying beer for US teenagers according to the results of a new survey by the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Easier For Teens To Get Prescription Drugs Easier Than Beer – Chattah Box

A new report released by the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) at Columbia University, has found that it is easier for teenagers in the U.S. to get prescription drugs, compared to getting alcohol, such as beer.

DRUGS – UK
Statistics on Drug Misuse: England, 2008 – Information Center

This annual statistical report presents information on drug misuse among both adults and children. It includes a focus on young adults.

ALCOHOL – UK
Industry body releases guidance on tackling public underage drinking – Alcohol Policy

The Wine and Spirit Trade Association has released a new guidance document ‘A New Way of Tackling Public Underage Drinking: Community Alcohol Partnerships’ which claims to be a new model for local enforcement to tackle underage drinking.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Are Americans in Denial about the Widespread Abuse of Prescription Drugs? – Pushing Back

As youth drug use continues to decline nationwide, we very concerned about the increasing rates of prescription drug abuse among teens.

DRUGS – UK
Drug treatment outcomes tool: fit for purpose and delivering world-beating data – NTA

The Treatment Outcomes Profile (TOP) – the tool used for monitoring the effectiveness of substance misuse treatment in England – has been assessed by peer-review as fit for purpose and is published in the journal, Addiction, (September edition, 2008) this week.

DRUGS – USA
Parents’ prescription drugs pose risk to teens – San Francisco Chronicle

The survey, released Thursday by the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse, found that parents are dropping the ball on preventing their kids from using drugs, drinking and smoking. Teenagers surveyed said it’s easier to buy narcotics than beer.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Prescription Drugs Easier To Get Than Beer – Injury Board

Kids assume drugs are safe. After all, they are approved by the Food and Drug Administration and they are in their parents’ medicine chests.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Youngsters Can Procure Prescription Drugs Easier Than Beer – eFlux Media

More youngsters say it’s easier for them to get prescription drugs than it is to acquire beer, shows a new survey released today by the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) at Columbia University.

DRUGS – USA
Youth access to drugs increases – Christian Science Monitor
Teenagers can get their hands on marijuana and prescription drugs more rapidly and easily this year than last, according to a new study. However, greater drug availability has not yet translated into greater drug abuse in the group – marijuana use among teens continues to decline.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Teens Easily, Illegally Access Prescription Drugs – eMax Health

Teens report it’s easier for them to access prescription drugs than beer, a fact that urges parents to be more attentive. Thirty four percent of teenagers abuse prescription drugs and harm their health without realizing it.

DRUGS – UK
Back To School: More Stressful Than Parents Think – Medical News Today

The Partnership for a Drug-Free America recently released a survey showing that the number one reason for teenage drug and alcohol abuse is to deal with school-related pressures.

DRUGS – UK
CHILDREN’S DRUG SURVEY – Life Education

One in five 10 year olds (19%), think that heroin is legal, according to a new survey from leading children’s health education charity Life Education.

ALCOHOL – UK
CHILDREN’ ALCOHOL SURVEY – Life Education

Almost a third of children (30%) think that for adults who drink wine, drinking five or more glasses of wine in one night is normal drinking behaviour, says a new survey from leading children’s health education charity Life Education.

METH – USA
McMaster eyes program to steer youths from meth – Greenville News

The images are raw, gut-wrenchingly akin to those black-and-white images of highway carnage that traffic courts once forced offenders to watch. Others ads show the physical toll the drug takes, oozing sores, rotting, falling out teeth, hallucinations, and raw skin from scratching at bugs that exist only in the mind.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Be aware of prescription drug abuse – Vineland Daily Journal

August was recently designated as National Medicine Abuse Awareness Month. With the National Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA) reporting that about 9 million people use prescription medication for nonmedical uses, the timing couldn’t have been better.

DRUGS – INDIA
Worrying Trend of Drug Related Deaths in Scotland – Med India

As per the latest report, drug related deaths had reached a record high of 455 during the past year, 8% higher than the previous year and double in 10 years.

ALCOHOL – USA
Alcohol energy drinks a threat to teens – Santa Fe - New Mexican

Alcohol and caffeine is a dangerous mix because the caffeine masks, but does not counteract, alcohol’s effects, resulting in a “wide-awake drunk.” The combination increases the likelihood of drunken driving, unsafe sex, assaults and other alcohol problems.

ALCOHOL – USA
Utah colleges pushing for ban on beer commercials – Salt Lake Tribune

College officials in Utah are among those calling for an end to beer commercials during televised NCAA sporting events.