Drug News

Alcohol – USA
On College Football Game Days, Efforts to Deter Binge Drinking – The New York Times

Shortly before kickoff at a Minnesota college football game, two students were greeted with breathalyzer tests, part of a new program to deter binge drinking at the games.

Drugs – USA
U.S. Adds Drones to Fight Smuggling – The New York Times

PALMDALE, Calif. — To help spot and track smugglers, the Homeland Security Department is expanding its use of drones, the unmanned aircraft widely used in Iraq and other war zones, beyond the Mexican and Canadian borders to the Caribbean and possibly other seas.

Marijuana – USA
Medical Marijuana: No Longer Just for Adults – The New York Times

At the Peace in Medicine Healing Center in Sebastopol, the wares on display include dried marijuana — featuring brands like Kryptonite, Voodoo Daddy and Train Wreck — and medicinal cookies arrayed below a sign saying, “Keep Out of Reach of Your Mother.”

Underage Drinking / Drugs – USA
Report Alcohol Overdoses Without Fear, Texas Tells Kids – Join Together

Texas youth can report alcohol overdoses or other problems without fear of being charged with underage drinking under a new policy announced by the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission (TABC).

DUI – UK
Phone App Allows Drinkers to Track Consumption – Join Together

The U.K. health ministry has released a software application for iPhone and Windows phones intended to empower users to keep better track of their drinking, the BBC reported Dec. 1.

Prescription Drugs – USA
Prescription drugs easily acquired from rogue Web sites – Tampabay.com

People can’t buy heroin or cocaine online, but a few clicks of the mouse get them darned close…

Youth – Prescription Drugs – USA
Youth Prescription Drug Abuse On Rise In ND – CBSNews.com

BISMARCK, N.D. – Young people are abusing prescription drugs with alarming frequency, sometimes during “pharm parties” where pills are set out like candy, a man whose son died of an overdose of painkillers told a conference Tuesday.

PAINKILLER – USA
Pharmaceutical drugs affecting water quality – Statesman Journal

In her July 25 guest opinion, Karen Wheeler of the Department of Human Services refers to the dangers of methamphetamine and other “street drugs” in Oregon’s untreated wastewater.

PAINKILLER – USA
Don’t flush that! – The Courier News

Elgin Township was going to have a drop-off program for pharmaceuticals that residents no longer want or need, but plans fell apart.

ALCOHOL – UK
More Than 1 In 10 Major Injuries In Ontario Involve High Blood Alcohol Levels – Medical News Today

A study of hospitalizations for severe injury in Ontario’s designated trauma centres shows alcohol was involved in at least 12% of major trauma cases in 2007-2008.

PAINKILLER – USA
One in 10 High School Seniors Have Used Narcotic Painkillers – MSN Health and Fitness News

Pain relief isn’t the main reason why one in 10 high school seniors have tried opioid drugs, a new U.S. study finds.

ALCOHOL – USA
Bill Would Mandate Use of Ignition-Interlock Devices – Join Together

A federal transportation bill now being debated in Congress would compel all states to require convicted drunk drivers to install alcohol-detecting ignition-interlock devices on their vehicles.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
More teens using prescription painkillers to get high – Bartlesville News

Experts say more and more teenagers are using prescription painkillers to get high. Other studies have found many teens get strong painkillers from their own previous prescriptions.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
12 percent of U.S. teens report opioid use – United Pres International

Some 12 percent of U.S. high school seniors say they have taken opioid drugs without a prescription for pain, relaxation or to get high, researchers said.

DRUGS – UK
Pain Relief Only One Motive For Opioid Use Among High School Seniors – Medical News Today

Taking opioid drugs without a prescription appears relatively common among high school seniors, according to a report in the August issue of Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

ALCOHOL – UK
Heavy Drinkers Of Beer And Spirits Face Significantly Increased Cancer Risk – Medical News Today

Heavy drinkers of beer and spirits face a much higher risk of developing cancer than the population at large, says a group of Montreal epidemiologists and cancer researchers.

PAINKILLERS – USA
Painkiller Patch Can Lead To Addiction – Science Daily

Morphine patches are supposed to reduce use of painkillers, and provide more control over their use in chronic pain conditions. But researchers at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) and St. Olavs Hospital in Trondheim have found otherwise.

METH – USA
Students learn of the dangers of meth – El Defensor Chieftain

The Socorro Rotary Club, in collaboration with the Sheriff’s Department and Healthy Family Initiative, hosted an informative seminar on the dangers of methenphetamine use for students at Zimmerly Elementary School.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Getting Rid of Unwanted Prescription Medication – WYTV News

Boardman Police are helping residents dispose of unused medications. The police have teamed up with Home Instead Senior Care to toss out unwanted and expired prescriptions and over-the-counter medications.

HEROIN – USA
Signals of heroin abuse – Aurora Beacon News

Here are some symptoms or clues from the Heroin Awareness Foundation that are key indicators of possible heroin use.

ALCOHOL – USA
Drug, alcohol testing coming to Carson High – Nevada Appeal

Drug and alcohol use has been prevalent among student-athletes for years. Weekend parties were, and still are, the norm. The only way a student-athlete has ever been penalized in the past is by getting caught red-handed or turned in by a fellow student. All that will change when school resumes in the fall, as Carson and Douglas high schools become the third and fourth schools in Nevada to go to mandatory drug testing of its student-athletes.

DRUGS – USA
Move over cocaine and heroin: Law enforcement fight a growing trend of prescription drug abuse – Shelby Star

They come in all colors, shapes and sizes.
Police have fought heroin, cocaine and meth for years. But now prescription drugs are a major problem.

HEROIN – USA
Back in heroin’s grasp: Deadly drug making a comeback on the Peninsula – WTKR TV News

On the street, they call it thunder, dust, junk or smack. Some shoot, smoke or snort it to feel the warm sensation — or to numb the pain. Like other drugs, heroin is popular one minute and fades into the background the next.

ALCOHOL – USA
Communication is key for parents addressing alcohol with children – Oshkosh Northwestern

For many parents, May signals the end of high school careers while for others it may mean their children having to readjust after returning home from their first year away at college.

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.

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.

METH – CANADA
Meth ingredients easy to find – Barrie Advance

After the bust of a would-be meth lab in Essa Township last week, The Advance wanted to see how easily ingredients needed to create the drug could be obtained in Barrie.

METH – USA
Meth cravings are really intense – Barrie Advance

It’s known as speed, meth, chalk, ice, crystal, or crystal meth but no matter what it’s called, methamphetamine is a highly addictive drug.

METH – USA
Fantastic Freebies: Me Not Meth T-shirts – Wallet Pop

If you give register for a free account with http://www.menotmeth.org, and then fill out this form, the organization will send you up to 2 free Me-Not-Meth t-shirts or tank tops.

DRUGS – USA
Effective Border Enforcement Spurs More Addiction in Mexico – Join Together

Better border enforcement that is making it increasingly difficult for Mexican cartels to transport illegal drugs into the United States is being cited as the reason for a spike in drug addiction in Mexico.

PAINKILLER – FRANCE
US fentanyl deaths topped 1,000 over 2 years – International Herald Tribune

More than 1,000 people died over two years from an illegal version of the painkiller fentanyl, the government reported Thursday in its first national tally of those deaths.

PAINKILLER – USA
Feds blame at least 1,000 deaths on overdoses from illegal fentanyl – The Star-Ledger

At least 1,000 people nationwide died from overdosing on fentanyl created in illegal laboratories, according to a federal investigation that began after a cluster of the deaths was reported in New Jersey two years ago.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Prescription medication teens’ drug of choice – Ventura County Star

The most popular pills include anti-anxiety medications such as Xanax and Valium, pain pills including Oxycontin and Vicodin, drugs for attention deficit disorder like Adderall and Ritalin, and Soma, a muscle relaxant.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
4 ways to keep your teens from abusing prescription drugs – Indianapolis Star

One in five teenagers admits to having used prescription drugs to get high, according to the Partnership for a Drug-Free America. Today there are more new abusers of prescription drugs than of marijuana.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Deaths From Prescription Drugs, Alcohol Mix Increase Greatly – Chattah Box

A new study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine has shown that more people than ever are dying from accidental drug overdoses. These are being caused by mixing prescription drugs with street drugs, and alcohol.

ADDICTION – USA
Pain pill abuse serious – Muskogee Daily Phoenix

Oklahoma was recently ranked worst in the nation for pain reliever abuse by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.

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.

DRUGS – AUSTRALIA
Heroin, cocaine seizures soar at Australia’s borders – The Age

Heroin seizures at Australia’s borders rose to a record high last financial year, while detections of cocaine also soared, new figures show.

HEROIN – AUSTRALIA
Illicit drugs: get it in the mail – The Sydney Morning Herald

Drug traffickers are increasingly using the mail system to post illicit drugs to Australia, as the number of heroin detections at the border reached the highest on record, a national crime report shows.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
South Florida leads the state in prescription drug deaths – Sun-Sentinel

Prescription drug overdose deaths skyrocketed in South Florida last year, surpassing increases in the state overall.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Pharmaceuticals Kill More Than Street Drugs – News 4 JAX

A report released Thursday by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the Florida Medical Examiner’s Commission revealed that common prescription drugs were responsible for more deaths in 2007 than common illegal drugs.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Prescription drugs bigger killers than illegal drugs – WWSB TV News
A report says that deaths caused by prescription drugs were three times as high as those caused by illegal drugs in Florida last year.

ALCOHOL – USA
Alcohol abuse placed on joint agenda – Los Altos Town Crier

What should be on the agenda, and why, precipitated a feisty back and forth between council and school board members last month.

ALCOHOL – USA
Alcohol abuse costs each Cdn. $463 annually, study finds – Canada.com

Alcohol abuse costs each Canadian an estimated $463 annually, according to a study by researchers at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH).

MORPHINE – USA
Ethex recalls morphine tablets – Prescribing Reference

Ethex has voluntarily recalled a single lot of morphine sulfate 60mg extended-release tablets due to a report of a tablet with double-thickness which may contain twice the level of active ingredient.

MARIJUANA – UK
Marijuana potency increases in 2007 – The Associated Press

Marijuana potency increased last year to the highest level in more than 30 years, posing greater health risks to people who may view the drug as harmless, according to a report released Thursday by the White House.

ADDICTION – USA
Pivotal Breakthrough Made In Alcohol Addiction Treatment – Science Daily

Alcoholism is a devastating disease in part because of the ‘symptom’ of heavy drinking but more so due to the extensive harm it causes physical organs, such as the heart and liver.

ALCOHOL – USA
Early Drinking and Adult Alcohol Dependence Increases Among Americans – Join Together

A study of individuals born between 1934 and 1983 found that more Americans began drinking alcohol at an early age over the decades, especially women, and that those who did drink at a younger age were more likely to be alcohol-dependent as adults.

COCAINE – AUSTRIA
US official says cocaine routes shifting from US to Europe – PR-Inside

The United States believes that South American cocaine traffickers are diverting shipments away from the United States to Europe.

COCAINE – USA
Caracas, Colombia, and Cocaine – Washington Post

When Colombian drug traffickers need to move cocaine out of the country, their first stop is often Venezuela (WashPost).

PAINKILLER – USA
Kids turning to ‘script pills for highs – Munster Times

Teens are gathering up unused prescription pills from their parents’ and grandparents’ homes and are taking them to school so they and their friends can get a buzz, police say.

DRUGS – USA
More overdose deaths linked to legal painkillers – pillyBurbs

Lethal combinations of painkillers and prescription anti-anxiety medications were responsible for most accidental drug deaths in Bucks County last year.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Abuse Of Prescription Drugs A Problem Among Teens – CBS Denver News
The statistics are hard to believe. One in five teens has abused prescription drugs. The Denver metro area is slightly above the national average in such abuse, according to the Denver Human Services Office of Drug Strategy.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Prescription meds most commonly abused drugs in schools today – Clearfield Progress

“My child doesn’t have a drug problem. If he did, I would know.” How many times have parents said that? How many times have you said it yourself? Is it true? Would you know?

DRUGS – USA
State pursues funds to educate kids about abuse of prescription drugs – The Salt Lake Tribune

With Utah ranked first in the U.S. for nonmedical use of prescription drugs, Lythgoe says pills obtained by adults for depression and other ailments are increasingly falling into the hands of people who shouldn’t have them: kids.

DRUGS – USA
Drug Addiction: A Click Away? – KGMB News

Morphine, vicodin, oxycontin… It used to be the only way to buy these powerful drugs was at a pharmacy, with a valid prescription from a doctor.

COCAINE – USA
Dangerous Addictions: Cocaine – Channels Online

Coke, blow, snow-the fun nicknames may help cocaine pass as a party drug, along with its ability to produce feelings of euphoria, sociability, alertness, and omnipotence in users. However, its dangers loom as strongly as ever, and its addictive quality is undeniable.

ALCOHOL – AUSTRALIA
Booze-fuelled violence doubles in decade – The Sydney Morning Herald

NSW authorities have defended their efforts to tackle drunken crime after a report showed the number of booze-fuelled attacks had doubled in under a decade.

ALCOHOL – USA
One in six drivers drink sometimes: report – Reuters

About 15 percent of U.S. adults have driven under the influence of alcohol in the past year and in some states as many as 25 percent did, according to a government study released on Wednesday.

ALCOHOL – IRELAND
New laws will clamp down on sale and advertising of alcohol – Irish Independent

The Government will launch a double-whammy assault on the alcohol industry this week with a clampdown on sales and advertising of drink.

METH – USA
State needs long-term meth solution – Tucson Citizen

In an effort to educate Arizona residents about the horrible impact meth has on people, lives and our community, a 30- minute documentary, “Crystal Darkness,” was shown on virtually every television station across our state April 15.

DRUGS – UK
Rat Study Suggests Why Teens Get Hooked On Cocaine More Easily Than Adults, And Find It Harder To Quit – Medical News Today

New drug research suggests that teens may get addicted and relapse more easily than adults because developing brains are more powerfully motivated by drug-related cues.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Prescription Drug Abuse – WTJA News

It’s a phenomenon that’s becoming more and more prevalent throughout the state – people turning to prescription medications for a quick fix.

CANNABIS – UK
Cannabis changed me from a happy confident teenager into a total wreck – Coventry Telegraph

CANNABIS use is soaring according to reports – and its popularity has been exaggerated by its reclassification as a ‘soft’ drug.