Drug News

PRESCRIPTION – USA
FDA issues warnings on Indian-made generic prescription drugs – Los Angeles Times

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday put the Indian generic drug giant Ranbaxy on notice that it would block entry to the U.S. market of 25 generic prescription drugs widely used by American consumers.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Prescription drug abuse vexes the medical profession – The Plain Dealer

Some say prescription drug abuse is on the rise among health-care professionals. Others say the numbers have not changed much, but that drugs of choice are more powerful, and addicted professionals often go to greater lengths to get them.

DRUGS – USA
Drug abuse by teens takes prescriptive turn – Sioux Falls Argus Leader

Teens increasingly are becoming addicted to prescription and over-the-counter drugs, substances as lethal as any illicit drug but often more readily available.

METH – USA
Hot New Country Group to Help Raise Money for Idaho Meth Project – Local News

One of country music’s hottest new groups will be in Idaho Falls to help raise money for the Idaho Meth Project.

METH – UK
Crystal meth: easy to make, highly dangerous and devastating some US states – Channel 4 News

It is one of the most dangerous drugs known to man and can be made from legal and easily obtainable ingredients.

ADDICTION – USA
Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month set; State, local agencies partner together – Cape Coral Daily Breeze

The Department of Children and Families will join community partners across the state to bring local awareness to the issue of drug and alcohol addiction.

ADDICTION – USA
Fundraiser to benefit addiction treatment groups – Albany Times Union

While addicts struggle to recover, some of the agencies that serve them struggle to survive.

DRUGS – USA
Family Day – CASA

A Day to Eat Dinner with Your ChildrenTM is a national movement to inform parents that the parental engagement fostered during frequent family dinners is an effective tool to help keep America’s kids substance free. Family Day reminds parents that Dinner Makes A Difference!

DRUGS – USA
College Campuses Concerned About Prescription Drug Abuse – Trans World News

Many campuses nationwide are taking prescription drug abuse seriously. Adderral, Ritalin, and other prescription drugs are being abused at an alarming rate.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Prevent prescription drug abuse – The Spectrum

As parents, we worry about our teenagers and drugs. We see the results of teen drug use in the media, our neighborhoods and sometimes in our own families. Did you know that a significant source of the drugs teens abuse is our own medicine cabinets?

DRUGS – UK
Last Call for Tackling Drugs, Changing Lives Awards – Home Office

Anyone who wishes to nominate a drug treatment team, police officer or volunteer who has gone that extra mile to tackle drugs has just ten days to make their local hero an example for the nation.

METH – ASIA
Methamphetamine usage rising – IRIN

Typically smoked, the potent central nervous system stimulant is highly addictive, causing paranoia, delusions and hallucinations.

DRUGS – USA
NJ Launches Campaign Against Medicine Abuse – Evening Bulletin

The Partnership for a Drug-Free New Jersey (PDFNJ) announced Monday a statewide public service campaign titled “Grandma’s Stash,” to raise awareness that misuse of prescription drugs is second only to marijuana as America’s most prevalent drug problem.

DRUGS – USA
WLPD teams with site to offer free drug tests – Journal and Courier

The urinalysis test recognizes the 10 most common illegal drugs: cocaine, amphetamine, marijuana, opiates, methamphetamine, benzodiazepine, oxycodone, propoxyphene and MDMA, more commonly known by its street name, ecstasy.

ALCOHOL – UK
BMA Scotland Response To The Scottish Government’s Proposed Strategy To Tackle Alcohol Misuse – Medical News Today

Doctors called for action, not words, to tackle alcohol misuse in Scotland.

ALCOHOL – USA
Underage, drunken fans can buy alcohol at stadiums – Dallas Morning News

Actors posing as drunken sports fans successfully bought alcohol from U.S. stadium vendors almost nine out of 10 tries, according to a University of Minnesota study.

ALCOHOL – USA
Even if you look drunk at a game, you can likely keep buying booze – Chicago Tribune

The stadiums and arenas of Chicago have seen untold amounts of alcohol-fueled mayhem, from obscene yelling to savage, bare-knuckle brawls. But according to a study released Wednesday, sports venues could be bringing some of this chaos on themselves.

ALCOHOL – USA
Study Finds Sports Stadiums Serve Alcohol to Intoxicated, Underage Fans – Join Together

An undercover operation conducted as part of research sponsored by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s Substance Abuse Prevention and Research Program (SAPRP) found that apparently underage and intoxicated fans have a relatively easy time purchasing alcohol at professional sports events.

METH – UK
‘Meth’ adverts to scare US teens – BBC News

Advertisement: An advertising campaign designed to scare teenagers away from using the drug ‘meth’ has been launched in the US.

METH – UK
Montana meth ads winning drug battle – BBC News

They call Montana “Big Sky Country” or “The Last Best Place” – and it is easy to see why with its wide open spaces, majestic mountains and meandering rivers. But there is a far less wholesome side to this wilderness, a problem more associated with grim urban despair – drugs.

PAINKILLER – USA
Finding the right substance abuse rehab for you! – Trans World News

Every substance abuse treatment center offers nominally different rehab programs for different types of addiction. Too often, though, the differences between those programs are only superficial, and the benefits of them are, in practice, nonexistent.

METH – USA
AG steamed over ‘meth coffee’ – World Net Daily

You can “chew them whole, snort the powder dry, cook it over a lighter and huff,” a San Francisco-based Meth Coffee company claims, but Illinois Attorney-General Lisa Madigan is brewing with anger over a marketing campaign that she says promotes drug use.

ALCOHOL – USA
Recovery Month Toolkits Available Now – Join Together

September is National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month, sponsored by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment (CSAT).

DRUGS – USA
Drug-related deaths in Utah reach a new high – KSL TV News

A report from the state medical examiner says drugs killed 519 people in Utah last year. That breaks the previous record of 485. The report also shows a disturbing and growing trend: Prescription drugs are now behind the majority of drug-related deaths in Utah.

HEROIN – USA
As the price of heroin drops, the drug is attracting younger users – Farmingham

The first time he dabbled with the drug he was a teen in the late 1960s, when a bag of heroin was about $30-$40 per bag, he recalls.

ALCOHOL – USA
OHSU working on drug that takes the pleasure out of drinking alcohol – KPIC

Oregon Health & Sciences University is developing a drug that could take the buzz out of drinking alcohol, raising the question of whether alcoholism could be cured with a simple pill.

COCAINE – UK
UCSF Study Shows That Cocaine Addiction Is Linked To Voluntary Drug Use And Cellular Memory – Medical News Today

Rats that voluntarily use cocaine show a persistent cellular memory in the brain’s reward center even after several months of abstinence from the drug, while their involuntary counterparts had no such memory, according to a new study by researchers at the University of California, San Francisco.

COCAINE – UK
New Study Finds Persistent Brain Changes In Response To Cocaine Depend On The Expectation Of Reward – Medical News Today

Drug addiction dramatically shifts a person’s attention, priorities, and behaviors towards a focus almost entirely on seeking out and taking drugs.

HEROIN – UK
Most Scots think alcohol is worse than heroin – Sunday Herald

A majority of Scots think alcohol is the drug that causes most harm to society, newly published survey results show. Some 51% of respondents to a module from the Scottish Social Attitudes Survey 2007 said alcohol was the drug which causes most problems for Scotland, compared with 22% who said heroin and 9% who said tobacco.

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
Too much alcohol damages heart and arteries – Reuters

Heavy drinking causes high blood pressure, stiff arteries and rigid heart muscles in men and enlarged hearts in women, boosting their risk of having heart attacks and strokes, researchers said on Wednesday.

ALCOHOL – USA
Nearly half of all Mass. teens have tried alcohol – The Boston Globe

A new survey has found that the number of Massachusetts high schools students using drugs and alcohol dropped for the sixth year in a row.

ALCOHOL – USA
Excess Drinking Boosts Cardiovascular Disease Risk – The Washington Post

While research suggests that moderate alcohol consumption may have health benefits, heavy drinking increases blood pressure, stiffens blood vessels and causes more rigid heart muscles in men and enlarged hearts in women, all risk factors for cardiovascular disease.

DRUGS – USA
No easy way to rid water of drug traces – North Jersey

Scientists don’t know whether trace amounts of hundreds of prescription drugs that are in the state’s drinking water can harm residents, New Jersey lawmakers were told.

METH – USA
Tennessee Meth Task Force seeks funding for traffic stop training – Times Free Press

As the number of methamphetamine laboratories in Tennessee levels off, the Tennessee Methamphetamine Task Force is trying to find ways to stop imports of the drug from other countries.

METH – USA
Illinois Meth Project names new ED – Windy City Times

Steve Mange, senior policy advisor for Attorney General Lisa Madigan, is the new executive director of the Illinois Meth Project.

METH – USA
Idaho Falls Meth Forum Overflows – Local ABC News

Hundreds filed in and dozens more were turned away tonight at one of the largest meth discussions in Eastern Idaho.

METH – USA
Mexico, China Partner with U.S. in Anti-Methamphetamine Fight – News Blaze

Mexico, China and the United States are working together to stop the use of methamphetamine, an addictive stimulant drug that has been called one of America’s most serious drug problems, two U.S. attorneys from the Department of Justice tell America.gov.

METH – USA
Event teaches sixth-graders about ways to stay safe – Killeen Daily Herald

On Tuesday, more than 900 screaming sixth-graders welcomed one of the more recognizable figures in Central Texas. It wasn’t Hannah Montana or Emmitt Smith. It was KWTX Channel 10′s head weatherman Rusty Garrett.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Prescription Drug Abuse Campaign – CBS News

Shelby County Coroner Diana Hawkins say the number of dead teenagers she’s seen from prescription drug overdoses is simply heartbreaking.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Center addresses prescription drug abuse – Juneau Empire

High school senior Katie Doyle said she knows about 20 classmates who have gone to rehab for prescription drug abuse in the past few years.

METH – USA
Preventing Meth Use in the Central Valley – KMPH TV News

According to the Drug Enforcement Agency, methamphetamine is the primary drug threat in California. And much of it is made right here in the Central Valley. The Kings County Partnership for Prevention is a group that is fighting against meth, and trying to prevent people from getting addicted.

COCAINE – UK
COCAINE TRACES FOUND IN ‘MOST’ STUDENT BARS – Evening Post

Tests have proved there is widespread use of cocaine in most Bristol University student bars. Students have used specialist swab tests to find traces of the Class-A drug at six out of seven bars at halls of residence in leafy Stoke Bishop.

MARIJUANA – AUSTRALIA
Marijuana flavoured candy banned – The Sydney Morning Herald

A new law in the US state of Georgia makes it illegal to sell sweets and other products made to taste like marijuana to minors, in what may be the first such ban in the country.

ADDICTION – USA
Town hall meeting outlines dangers of drug addiction – Northwest Arkansas Times

Circuit Court Judge Mary Ann Gunn emphasized prevention as the key to solving Northwest Arkansas’ drug problem.

METH – USA
U.S. Drug Czar Hosts Meth Conference In St. Louis – KSDK TV News

Attorney General Michael B. Mukasey and John Walters, the U.S. Drug Czar will host high-ranking officials from the world’s largest producing and some of the principal consuming nations of methamphetamine and meth precursor chemicals in St. Louis on Wednesday.

ALCOHOL – UK
London’s mayor bans alcohol on trains, buses – Reuters

London’s new mayor Boris Johnson announced on Wednesday that alcohol would be banned on the capital’s transport system from next month.

ALCOHOL – UK
Boris bans booze on buses – The Press Association

New London Mayor Boris Johnson has announced an alcohol ban on transport in the capital.

ALCOHOL – UK
Johnson bans drink on transport – BBC News

Plans to ban the drinking of alcohol on London’s transport system have been unveiled by new mayor Boris Johnson.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
National Campaign to Prevent Misuse of Cough Medicine – Join Together

Five women have launched a national campaign to raise awareness of the problem of cough-medicine abuse, aided by a manufacturer’s association.

METH – USA
Gatehouse Academy Drug Counselors Participate in Statewide Meth Hotline – Webwire

Television stations across Arizona simultaneously aired “Crystal Darkness” a documentary on methamphetamine use. Drug counselors and specialists answered calls from a toll free hotline, offering guidance and hope.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
School program in KC suburb warns of prescription abuse – Fort Mill Times

A suburban Kansas City school is the first to launch a national program warning students about prescription drug abuse.

PRESCIRPTION – USA
Teens Get Prescription Drug Abuse Warning – KCTV News

Drug and alcohol experts say more and more teens are passing on the regular street drugs and heading for their parents’ medicine cabinets.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
What’s in your water? – Chicago Tribune

The Tribune finds trace amounts of drugs and chemicals—including anti-seizure medication and a Teflon ingredient— in Lake Michigan drinking water.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Chemicals, Drugs Found In Chicago Water – NBC TV News

After a national story exposing pharmaceutical chemicals in the nations water supply prompted a test of Chicago’s water supply.

DRUGS – USA
Substance Use and Dependence in First Year After Initiation – Join Together

Substance use trajectories in the year after initiation vary greatly by substance, according to a recent analysis of data from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health.

METH – USA
Idaho Methamphetamine Admissions Outpace Alcohol and Marijuana – Join Together
A nationwide study released by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration shows treatment admissions for methamphetamine use increasing faster than those from both alcohol and marijuana in Idaho.
DRUGS – USA
Survey shows one in five respondents have used Ritalin or Adderall – LSU Reveille

Final exams traditionally have students studying long hours to cram for their final exams. But some students are now using a quick-fix for brain retention.

COCAINE – USA
Sniffing out a fruit-flavored trend in cocaine – MSNBC News

Federal drug agents say candy-flavored cocaine is a new and troubling development and are hoping to keep it from spreading to the rest of the country after its recent emergence in California.

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.