Drug News

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Teens Having Easier Time Getting Prescription Drugs – US News and World Report

It’s easier to illegally obtain prescription drugs such as OxyContin, Percocet, Vicodin or Ritalin than it is to get beer, say a growing number of American teens.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Teen drug abuse – Watertown Daily Times

Surveys have shown a decline in illegal drug use by teenagers in recent years, but many of the same surveys have also shown an increase in the teens abusing prescription drugs.

METH – USA
First Global Conference on Methamphetamine to Feature 80 Speakers from 16 Countries – Drug War Chronicles
First Global Conference on Methamphetamine to Feature 80 Speakers from 16 Countries
Full Program Agenda Available for Conference September 15-16, 2008, Prague, Czech Republic.

METH – USA
The Lure Of Methamphetamine – Black Voice News

It’s known by many names: meth, crystal, ice, methamphetamine, speed, crank, glass, yaba, tina and many others. Methamphetamine is also extremely addictive and is plowing through the nation, from coast to coast and from city to countryside, leaving behind a trail of broken families and destroyed lives.

ALCOHOL – AUSTRALIA
Govt urged to collect better data on alcohol consumption – ABC News

A leading Australian health scientist is calling on the Federal Government to order liquor retailers to provide accurate data on alcohol sales in Australia.

ALCOHOL – AUSTALIA
Australia failing to collect data on alcohol consumption – The Australian
DOCTORS say policies to tackle drinking are under threat from a lack of figures on alcohol consumption and warn Australia may become the only OECD nation not to collect the information.
PRESCRIPTION – USA
Prescription drugs are in drinking water – Best Syndication

It sounds like the plot of a bad movie; people taking low doses of antibiotics without knowing it until they are no longer able to fight off even simple infections. Believe it or not, this is rapidly becoming a stark reality.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Free outdated prescription drug disposal available Saturday – Times Daily

Curtis Burns said that in at least three out of four households in the Shoals there are outdated prescription drugs that should be disposed of.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Prescription drug abuse “rampant” in Ohio – WTAM News Radio

The Ohio Department of Alcohol and Drug Addiction Services has released its biannual report on the latest drug trends across the state.

METHADONE – USA
Methadone use, deaths increasing – Statesman

A synthetic form of opium, it is a cheap and powerful pain reliever that has helped millions. But because it is also abused by thrill seekers and prescribed by doctors unfamiliar with its risks, methadone is now the fastest-growing cause of narcotic deaths.

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 – USA
Drug-related deaths hit new high in Utah – Salt Lake Tribune

Even as the state is trying to reduce the number of drug-related deaths, Utah has set another record for people killed by pills, powders and needles.

METH – USA
Crystal Methamphetamine - The New Drug of Choice – American Chronicle
Crystal methamphetamine, also known as ice, crank, glass and shards, is today’s street drug of choice.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Prescription Drugs May Increase Falls Among Seniors – NBC News

University of North Carolina researchers have released a list of prescription drugs that may increase the risk for falls among seniors who take at least four medications on a regular basis.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Prescription for Disaster – Injury Board

A recent study shows that prescription medication related deaths have drastically increased in the last two decades.

METH – UK
Warning over crystal meth – The Press Association

Ireland must pull together to stop the drug crystal meth ravaging the country, Garda Commissioner Fachtna Murphy warned.

METH – IRELAND
Crystal meth explosion feared – Limerick Post

Limerick must prepare itself for an explosion of crystal meth abuse, and put measures in place to prevent large scale addiction, a city councillor has warned.

METH – USA
Meth Coffee fails to amuse Madigan – Sun Times

“Parody or not, it’s still glorifying drug use and it’s sending a terrible message,” said Madigan’s spokeswoman Robyn Ziegler.
PRESCRIPTION – USA
Report Underscores Fatal Risk of Combining Prescriptions, Other Substances at Home – Join Together

While medication-related fatalities in clinical settings have long captured the attention of researchers and health authorities, skyrocketing rates of deaths at home from combining medications and other substances have gone largely unnoticed

HEROIN – UK
Heroin batch death risk warning – BBC News

A warning has been issued to drug users about poor quality “red heroin” circulating in southern Scotland.

DRUGS – AUSTRALIA
Girls smoke dope just as much as boys – The Age

While men in their 20s and 30s are still more likely to smoke the drug than their female counterparts, the gender difference has disappeared among teenagers.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Growing prescription drug abuse in U.S – Reuters

U.S. state, federal and local authorities across the United States are struggling to contain a rising tide of prescription drug abuse, which federal data show is now the single-biggest cause for an increase in drug overdose deaths.

DRUGS – UK
Deaths From Combining Drugs And/or Alcohol Skyrocket – Medical News Today

In the first large-scale study of home medication consumption, sociologists at the University of California, San Diego have found a 3,196 percent increase in fatal domestic medication errors involving alcohol and/or street drugs.

ALCOHOL – UK
Why The Alcopop Tax Is Working - Australian Drug Foundation – Medical News Today

The Australian Drug Foundation (ADF) took aim at the liquor lobby for misleading the public about the Federal Government’s tax increase on ready-to-drink beverages.

ALCOHOL – UK
Alcohol Dependence And Hispanics – Medical News Today

A large survey conducted by researchers at The University of Texas School of Public Health Dallas Regional Campus, which examined alcohol abuse and dependence among Hispanic male populations in the United States, will be expanded to Mexican males living along the U.S.-Mexico border.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Southern Oregon residents dropping off unwanted pills – The Oregonian

Police Department has taken many drugs off the street. The southwest Oregon community recently became the first in Douglas County to start an unused pharmaceutical take-back program.

DRUGS – USA
Health officials warn of contaminated drugs – WRAL News

A dozen people have gone to Wake County emergency rooms in the past week after ingesting cocaine or heroin that might have contaminated, public health officials said Tuesday.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Oregon keeping prescriptions drugs off streets, out of environment – Seattle Post Intelligencer

The southwest Oregon community recently became the first in Douglas County to start an unused pharmaceutical take-back program. To keep prescription drugs away from teens and the water supply, residents are asked to check their medicine cabinets and drop off any unused pills at the police department.

HEROIN – USA
Citizens offer ideas to curb drugsPortage residents respond after heroin overdose death – Kalamazoo Gazette

About 60 people gathered at Portage City Hall for the brainstorming session, motivated by the June death of an 18-year-old Portage woman from a heroin overdose.

ALCOHOL – IRELAND
New regulations on sale of alcohol come into force today – Irish Times

STRICT NEW regulations governing the sale and possession of alcohol, which aim to curb public disorder and eliminate underage drinking, come into force today.

METH – USA
Prosecutors seek help in anti-meth campaign – Visalia Times Delta

The Tulare County District Attorney’s Office is seeking volunteers to help put on a public awareness campaign about the Central Valley’s problem with crystal methamphetamine.

METH – USA
Crackdown on meth has made cocaine cheaper – Grand Junction Sentinel

Nearly anyone these days can recognize the hollowed-out features, skinny limbs and pockmarked skin that characterize someone hooked on methamphetamine, thanks in part to intensive local education campaigns.

ALCOHOL – USA
Prenatal Drinking, Environmental Enrichment: Effects On Neurotrophins Are Independent Of Each Other – Science Daily

Prenatal alcohol exposure may be particularly destructive for neurotrophins, a family of peptides that influence the growth, development and functional plasticity of the fetal brain.

ALCOHOL – USA
Prenatal Alcohol Exposure Endangers Neurotrophin Levels – US News and World Report

Exposure to alcohol prenatally could specifically be harmful to neurotrophins, peptides which are involved in the growth and development of the fetal brain, a new study shows.

ALCOHOL – USA
Alcohol + loud music = more alcohol – Los Angeles Times

Trying to limit your alcohol intake is tougher when you’re drinking in a bar with loud music, according to a new study.

ALCOHOL – UK
Loud music in bars makes customers drink more, say scientists – Telegraph

The study, to be published later this year in the journal Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research, said the drinks industry already knows that music can have an effect on how long people stay in bars.

HEROIN – USA
Heroin deaths worry health officials – KEX

An increase of 32-percent in heroin deaths this year has Multnomah County health officials worried.

HEROIN – USA
Methadone Use is on the Rise, and the Effects are Deadly – Injury Board

According to the National Center for Health Statistics, overdoses caused by prescription painkillers are increasing, and Methadone abuse is escalating more rapidly than any other drug.

MWTHADONE – USA
FDA addresses Methadone Dangers – Injury Board

Issued back in 2006, this Health Advisory from the FDA warns against the dangers of methadone and includes important prescribing information for its safe use.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Prescriptions are top drug abused by teens – Cleveland Daily Banner

Nationwide prescription drugs have become the second most abused illegal drug, behind marijuana, among young people ages 12 to 17, but not in Bradley County.

METH – USA
Officials keep an eye out for meth – Morning Sentinel

But while they don’t produce a lot of the drug, Maine meth labs represent a subculture of drug users that officials are watching carefully.

MORPHINE – CANADA
‘Dode’ for a cheap high – South Asian Focus

Poppy powder, a derivative of highly addictive and illegal opium, is openly sold in some meat shops in Brampton and Mississauga. Its use is raising questions about its legality and potentially harmful effects for those seeking an unconventional ‘high’.

DRUGS – CANADA
SouthCoast Recovery, Orange County California’s Foremost Drug and Alcohol Rehab Center – Free Press Release Center

SouthCoast Recovery, a premier California alcohol and drug rehab center, announces the addition of a Adderall Treatment Program to its 30, 60, 90-day and six month residential treatment programs.

ADDICTION – USA
When you decide you can’t stop your addiction on your own, here is the rehab call – Trans World News

Privacy is and must be the bedrock of the drug rehabilitation process. Some drug treatment centers merely pay lip service to that principle. Cliffside Malibu makes it a way of life.

ALCOHOL – UK
No alcohol for young drivers call – BBC News

The legal blood alcohol limit should be cut to zero for drivers aged 17 to 20, England’s chief medical officer says.

ADDICTION – BULGARIA
The Sober Sources Network Offers Thorough Addiction Support – PR-USA

Addiction recovery, no matter the type of addiction, has become the focus of several online sites. The Sober Source Network is the flourishing and leading resource network offering support for alcoholism and addiction.

ALCOHOL – UK
Cops launch drink, drug, driving blitz – Evening Times

A SUMMER crackdown on drink drivers has been launched today with a series of high-visibility police patrols across the west of Scotland.

DRUGS – IRELAND
Illegal drug use - Urgent wake-up call needed – Drugs.ie

For too long people tolerated drink driving, but the carnage on our roads served as a wake-up call. The victims were often young people overcome by the influence of alcohol and a sense of bravado.

ALCOHOL – UK
Are British Youth Drinking And Bingeing More? – Medical News Today

The UK Youth Alcohol Action plan was released in June - targeting alcohol use by underage drinkers. The report cites encouraging evidence.

ALCOHOL – UK
How To Save $1 Billion And 800 Lives In Canada – Medical News Today

The economic burden of alcohol abuse costs each Canadian $463 per year. In fact, the direct health care costs for alcohol abuse in Canada exceed those of cancer.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Prescription Drug Proposal Expands – WEEK TV

It’s one class project that’s stretching way beyond school grounds. Students at Pontiac Township High School developed the Prescription Drug Disposal Program about five months ago.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Prescription drug abuse rising among youth – Union Democrat

Alcohol has long been the cornerstone of youthful experimentation. More and more, teens and young adults are tapping into those child-safe orange bottles as an additional means to a high.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
5 Ways to Avoid Prescription Drugs – Stop Aging Now

Before you get that prescription filled, consider what lifestyle changes you could make, first. Just these five changes can make a big difference in your condition or your risk.

METH – USA
Report: Valley teens’ attitudes about meth are changing – ABC TV News

It’s hard not to notice the billboards around the Valley. You know, the ones showing methamphetamine addicts in all their glory, sores on the mouths, rotted out teeth and skin aged beyond their years.

METH – USA
Acoma hosts meth awareness meeting – Cibola County Beacon

It isn’t here in full force, but it will be. It is methamphetamine and it will not let you go once it takes hold.

MARIJUANA – USA
Marijuana more potent than ever – Los Angeles Times

Marijuana is more potent than at any time since scientific analysis of the drug began in the 1970s, according to a report from the University of Mississippi’s Potency Monitoring Project.

MARIJUANA – UK
US report says Marijuana strength increasing – Telegraph

Marijuana strength has increased to its highest levels in more than 30 years, according to a report by scientists.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Legal Drugs Kill Far More Than Illegal, Florida Says – The New York Times
From “Scarface” to “Miami Vice,” Florida’s drug problem has been portrayed as the story of a single narcotic: cocaine. But for Floridians, prescription drugs are increasingly a far more lethal habit.

COCAINE – UK
Govt starts cocaine crackdown – Politics

A new government crackdown on cocaine begins today with drug minister Vernon Coaker announcing a £1 million FRANK campaign aimed at 15 to 18-year-olds and a government commitment to Colombia’s ‘Shared Responsibility’ campaign.

ADDICTION – USA
Sunset Malibu-Catering to your individual addiction – Trans World News

Any alcohol and drug treatment center talk about the importance of “expert” clinical care. Unfortunately, words don’t always translate into practice.

ADDICTION – USA
New Drug Addiction and Alcohol Drug Treatment Center Opens in Palm Springs : Recover from Addiction and Discover

Palm Springs Recovery, a luxurious yet affordable addiction and alcohol drug treatment center, announced its grand opening May 19. Palm Springs Recovery is dedicated to the practice of teaching a healthy, sober lifestyle in which clients are able to carry back into the real world.

METH – USA
Numbers Show Improvement In Meth Battle – KCRA News

Like the effects of the drug, methamphetamine hit Stanislaus County fast and with intensity.

METH – USA
Meth Coalition Reaching out to Hastings – Nebraska TV

“Growing up I lived in foster homes because of parents who used meth.” Having seen what meth can do, Betty Vertin tries to help others. But finds many don’t think it’s a problem in a town like Hastings.

METH – USA
Kroger says meth, environment top priorities as Ore. AG – KCBY News

The federal prosecutor turned law professor who is about to become the next Oregon attorney general says his top priorities are battling the illegal methamphetamine trade and getting tough on enforcing environmental laws.

DRUGS – AUSTRALIA
More older drivers under influence – Melbourne Herald Sun

DRIVERS, especially those over 55, are putting lives at risk by driving while drowsy, dizzy and clumsy on prescription medication, new research shows.

ALCOHOL – UK
BMA Response To Government Campaign On Alcohol Units, UK – Medical News Today

People could be risking their health and driving over the limit because they don’t know how many alcohol units they’re consuming.

ALCOHOL – USA
Anita Bruzzese: Preventing alcohol addiction – Asbury Park Press
It’s not that we think they’re alcoholics, but we are aware that there could be a problem. And that’s where a little education can go a long way to making sure these little problems don’t become full-scale disasters that ruin professional and personal lives, says one expert.

ALCOHOL – USA
Students say there’s lots to do without alcohol – Lawrence Journal World

The juniors and seniors who volunteered received training and also recently made presentations to classes at West Junior High School. They plan to visit the three other junior high schools before the end of the school year. Next year, advisers hope students can make presentations to other high school students.

METH – USA
Crystal meth awareness campaign comes to Arizona – ASU Web Devil

Bleach and drain cleaner, aren’t just for household cleaning anymore. They can be used as ingredients, along with battery acid, brake fluid and many other harmful chemicals, in one of the most addictive and dangerous drugs.

METH – USA
First Moms Off Meth national conference coming to Bridge View Center Friday – Ottumwa Courier

It started in Ottumwa, so it seems fitting that the first Moms Off Meth national conference will take place here, too.

METH – USA
Conference aims to pierce the darkness of meth use – Eastern Arizona Courier

Methamphetamine, often called crystal meth, is a drug that can plunge its users into a dark, bottomless cesspool of illness and despair.

DRUGS – CANADA
Navy test reveals use of cocaine, marijuana – The Province

A surprise drug test done in December indicates that six per cent of Maritime Forces Pacific members are using illegal drugs, the navy says.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Oregon is No. 1 in legal drug abuse – Mail Tribune

Oregonians lead the nation in the abuse of prescription and over the counter drugs and are showing up at Asante’s chemical recovery center in much larger numbers than users of meth, cocaine and heroin combined. Teens are helping expand that toll.

HEROIN – USA
Heroin use among young ‘rising’ – BBC News

Heroin is rapidly becoming the drug of choice for young people and the children as young as six have used it, drug workers in south Wales have said.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Brown County offers prescription disposal – Green Bay Press-Gazette

Although Brown County has not tested the local waterways for pharmaceuticals, officials warn residents not to throw drugs out or flush them down the toilet.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Prescription drugs found in drinking water across U.S. – CNN News

A vast array of pharmaceuticals — including antibiotics, anti-convulsants, mood stabilizers and sex hormones — have been found in the drinking water supplies of at least 41 million Americans, an Associated Press investigation shows.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Cotinine, Other Prescription Drugs, Found in U.S. Drinking Water – Associated Content

For those who drink tap water regularly, this proves disturbing news. If you’re like me, and prefer bottled water . . . well, the news isn’t that much better. According to a CNN news report, some bottled water is little more than reprocessed tap water. This suggests that drinkers of either supply of water are at some risk for coming into contact with these drugs.

METH – USA
Idaho Meth Project Coming to Bonners – Rural Northwest

A large-scale prevention program aimed at significantly reducing first-time meth use through an aggressive statewide campaign is coming to Bonners Ferry.

METHADONE – UK
Scotland Is Europe’s Worst Country For Drug Deaths – Glasgow Daily Record

SCOTLAND has been named as Europe’s drug death blackspot. A report has revealed we have almost twice as many drug-related deaths as any other European country per head of population. Experts have now called for an overhaul in the way Scots addicts are treated.

DRUGS – UK
NYC: Traces of Sedatives in NYC Water – The Associated Press

Research studies have turned up minute amounts of more than 15 drugs or their byproducts in several pristine-looking rivers, a reservoir, and aqueducts feeding the country’s biggest water system.

DRUGS – UK
Drugs Found in Watersheds of 28 Areas – The Associated Press

At least one pharmaceutical or byproduct was detected in testing within the watersheds of 28 major metropolitan areas, according to an Associated Press survey of 62 major water providers and data obtained from independent researchers.

DRUGS – USA
Drugs seep into tap water – Columbia Daily Tribune

The nation’s drinking water supplies are not as pristine as might be expected — traces of pharmaceuticals are all too common, an Associated Press investigation finds. First in a series.

METH – USA
GLOBAL COOPERATION KEY TO PROGRESS MADE AGAINST METH IN THE UNITED STATES – ONDCP

Deputy Director of U.S. National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), today heralded international cooperation in the effort to reduce methamphetamine production, trafficking, and use.