Drug News

HEROIN – USA
Heroin high here getting cheaper – The Columbus Dispatch

Mexican drug cartels have saturated Columbus’ heroin market, pushing down the price of a kilogram and hooking a larger share of the city’s users.

PAINKILLER – USA
70,000 U.S. kids overdose each year — accidentally — on everyday household meds – TIME

Some 100,000 kids end up in U.S. emergency rooms each year because they’ve accidentally been poisoned. No, they’re not all raiding the cupboard full of cleaning supplies.

ADDICTION – USA
10 reasons to kick addictions – Desert News

Making the decision to give up an addiction may seem like a simple act to those who have never struggled with the issue. The truth is that sobriety is a process that, for those who follow the path, will last a lifetime. The great news is that by enduring and eventually embracing the process, you will also have a life. Here are 10 reasons to get started.

DRUGS – USA
Rescue Ink helps young people striving to quit drugs, alcohol – Zanesville Times Recorder

Smith along with her husband, Richard, have opened a new store in New Lexington with that idea in mind. Rescue Ink, at 126 Main St., has clothes, bikes, shoes and other items at prices that are affordable to those families and teens finding themselves in financial crisis.

ALCOHOL – USA
Alcohol Abuse Is Treated With The Most Extensive Treatment Programs – Trans World News

Sunset Malibu, an exclusive treatment center on the California coast, has long been a transformational force in the field of rehabilitation and recovery. Now, Sunset is announcing its redoubled efforts in the fight against alcohol dependency.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Your prescription drugs can kill – Dubuque Telegraph Herald

Iowa health officials warn of the growing threat of unintentional poisoning. A University of Iowa report shows the state’s number of unintentional poisoning deaths rose from 67 in 2002 to 160 in 2008.

ADDICTION – USA
Campaign focuses on addiction awareness – Scarlet Scuttlebutt

NCADD’S eighth annual Tree of Hope campaign is designed to raise the consciousness in Middlesex County to the fact that addiction is an illness from which many do recover, and to celebrate those recoveries.

ADDICTION – INDIA
Drug addiction among adolescents on the rise – Indian Express

The alarming trend of adolescents taking to drugs, including sniffing petroleum products, cigarettes, alcohol and even smack, has caught up across all economic strata in the city, doctors dealing with such cases say.

DRUGS – USA
Drug abuse large part of crime in North Port – Sarasota Herald Tribune

A police report to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement shows violent crimes essentially level compared with 2008, and property crimes such a burglary dropped by 9 percent.

HEROIN – USA
Heroin: More Than A Big City Problem – NBC News

It’s no longer thought of as just a “big city problem.” Heroin is showing up in smaller communities all over our area. Mt. Horeb is known for a lot of things. Heroin would probably not be one of them. But police are seeing it here as well. And just like other areas in south central Wisconsin, it’s got their attention.

ALCOHOL – USA
Women and Men in Drug Rehab or Alcohol Treatment – Trans World News

Studies and surveys conducted by various state and federal agencies have shown that the ratio of males to females who enter drug rehab or alcohol treatment is 2.3 to 1 respectively. Recent census data indicates an almost even number of men and women in the US.

METH – USA
The dangers of methamphetamine – Richmond Register

Representatives of state and federal law enforcement agencies gathered with media members in an airplane hangar Wednesday morning to discuss the rise in methamphetamine production.

DRUGS – USA
Substance Abuse Treatment Facilitator Locator – SAMHSA

To locate the drug and alcohol abuse treatment programs nearest you, find your State on the map below and click on it.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Study urges action to get patients to follow prescriptions – Boston Globe

Patients who do not take their medications as prescribed pay a price in poorer health, more frequent hospitalizations, and a higher risk of death.

DRUGS – USA
Drugs 101: Introduction to Marijuana – Examiner

When I was in high school, so many, many years ago, marijuana was the drug of choice. Cocaine was around, but it was expensive. Speed was available, as was LSD and mushrooms, all cheap and easy to obtain. Methamphetamine, crack cocaine, MDMA, GHB and ecstasy, were not around yet.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
1 in 5 teens shares prescriptions – USA Today

About 20% of U.S. teens exchange prescription drugs such as antibiotics and allergy medications with friends, a practice that can be dangerous and potentially deadly, warns a new study.

ALCOHOL – UK
Reducing Drinking And Preventing Relapse Using A Synthetic Derivative Of The Kudzu Vine – Medical News Today

Kudzu and its extracts and flowers have been used in traditional Chinese folk medicine to treat alcoholism for about 1,000 years.

ALCOHOL – USA
Teens of Dads Who Drink Too Much Tend to Follow Suit – Atlanta Journal Constitution

Teen children who live with alcohol-abusing fathers are at higher risk for alcohol or drug abuse themselves, a U.S. government study released Thursday shows.

ALCOHOL – USA
Almost Quarter of Suicides Involve Intoxication – Atlanta Journal Constitution

Almost 25 percent of people who take their own lives are intoxicated when they commit the act, U.S. health officials report.

ALCOHOL – USA
Study shows dangerous drinking behavior on the rise among college students – The Georgetown Voice

A new study from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism found that binge drinking, drunk driving and alcohol-related deaths among college students rose over the past decade.

ALCOHOL – USA
More college students drinking and driving – College News

A recent study by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) found that alcohol-related deaths, heavy drinking episodes, and drunk driving have all been on the rise among 18- to 24-year-olds over the past decade.

ALCOHOL – USA
Alcohol Rehab Center Offers A Road To Recovery For Alcoholics – Express Press Release

Alcohol is a powerful drug that becomes an addiction for many. Alcoholics often don’t realize the damage the drug does to their bodies. This damage does not stop at the patient’s own health, but the well being and emotions of their loved ones.

ALCOHOL – USA
Binge drinking rises nationwide – The Daily Iowan

It’s not just UI students with a drinking problem. The binge-drinking rate, as well as alcohol-related crimes and fatalities, rose on college campuses nationwide over the past decade, according to a study from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism released June 15.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Prescription drug abuse in Indian country – Indian Country Today

Tribal communities facing an increase in prescription drug abuse are being offered a two-day training program by Lamar Associates.

ADDERALL – USA
Stimulants for ADHD Shown to Cause Sudden Death in Children – Huffington Post

A new study, published Monday in the American Journal of Psychiatry, confirms what I’ve been warning about for years in my scientific books and articles. The stimulants used to treat children for so-called ADHD can cause sudden cardiac arrest and death in kids.

ADDICTION – USA
North Carolina Bill Misses the Point of Drug Addiction – Trans World News

In data obtained from United States Department of Health and Human services the number of North Carolina citizens seeking but not receiving drug treatment nearly tripled between 2006 and 2007.  This trend continues for those seeking alcohol treatment.

ADDICTION – USA
High School students learn from peers about overcoming addiction – Gloucester Daily Times

Manchester Essex Regional High School students learned first hand of the struggles students their own age have faced overcoming addictions to drugs and alcohol last Friday.

ALCOHOL – USA
Is it Really About Alcohol? The Truth About Alcohol Abuse in Women – FOX Business NEws

Six million women in the U.S. abuse or are dependent on alcohol, according to the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University.

DRUGS – UK
Tackling the harm caused by drugs – Home Office

Multi-agency work to get a grip on drug-related offending and the harm it causes in local neighbourhoods will step up a gear from 1 April.

ADDICTION – USA
Addiction Recovery Programs That Are Designed For Your Needs – Trans World News

There’s no such thing as a one-size-fits-all addiction treatment program. Indeed, those rehab facilities which claim to offer “universal” addiction treatments are either lying or delusional.

ADDICTION – USA
Weighing Your Addiction Treatment Options – Trans World News

Drug treatment, unfortunately, is something of a taboo in American society. People don’t talk about addiction treatment because they don’t understand it, or because they’re ashamed of it, or because they think people will look at them funny if they bring it up.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Police collect used and expired prescriptions – WCNC News

Hundreds of drugs now off the streets. But, it wasn’t a big police bust or turf war between gangs. In fact, they came from your homes. CMPD held a special program Saturday to let people turn in unwanted or expired prescription drugs.

ALCOHOL – USA
Educate teens on alcohol’s many risks – Pocono Record

April is national Alcohol Awareness Month and the focus is on underage drinking. Alcohol is the drug most frequently used by high school seniors, and its use is increasing.

METH – USA
Zero Meth party planned – Gadsden Times

A ZeroMeth teen block party is scheduled Friday during the monthly First Friday event. Etowah County District Attorney Jimmie Harp has joined with Downtown Gadsden Inc. and the Gadsden Public Library to create awareness about the devastating consequences of crystal meth.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Police Collect 80,000 Prescription Pills Saturday – WSOC TV News

On Saturday Charlotte Mecklenburg police along with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) sponsored “Operation Medicine Drop” and said it was a success.
Officers said these drop off events are a good way to make sure expired and unwanted prescription drugs don’t fall into the wrong hands.

ALCOHOL – USA
Too much beer, wine linked to cancer – United Press International

Downing a pint of beer or large glass of wine every day increases the risk of liver and bowel cancer, says the World Cancer Research Fund in Britain.

ALCOHOL – UK
Young ‘ignore alcohol campaigns’ – BBC News

Health campaigns warning of the dangers of alcohol are being ignored by many young people who see binge drinking as acceptable, researchers say.

HEROIN – UK
Rise in rural heroin use – The Press Association

Heroin use has increased fourfold in rural Ireland with ruthless dealers targeting towns and villages with no treatment centres, it emerged

ADDICTION – USA
Empower Yourself With A Superior Addiction Treatment Program – Trans World News

No one can get better for you in an alcohol or drug rehabilitation center. Some of the most high-priced facilities in Los Angeles would have you believe that getting sober is simply a matter of going through the motions of an exclusive treatment program

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Prescription Drug Scams Happening in the Ozarks – Ozark First

It’s not exactly what the doctor ordered, but a scam involving prescription drugs is making its way through several Ozarks communities.

DRUGS – UK
Orthodox community steps up its anti-drugs campaign – The JC

A strictly Orthodox charity is planning to step up its campaign over the next few weeks to educate its constituency about the risk of drugs.

METHADONE – USA
Methadone Rises as a Painkiller With Big Risks – The New York Times

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

HEROIN – USA
Heroin Becoming Local Drug of Choice – WSAZ News

Heroin, one of the deadliest drugs in the country, is taking a toll locally — quickly becoming the drug of choice.

HEROIN – UK
Red alert for heroin users – Evening Telegraph

Heroin is cut with other substances to maximise dealers’ profits and whatever red heroin has been cut with creates new and potentially fatal risks. The drug, off-red in colour, crystallises quickly in the syringe so addicts must shoot up quickly.

ALCOHOL – USA
CADCA Survey Finds Alcohol Top Problem Facing Communities – CADCA

According to CADCA´s 2007 Annual Survey of Coalitions, 68 percent of community anti-drug coalitions across the country ranked alcohol as the number one problem facing their community.

METH – USA
New Publication Offers Strategies to Tackle Methamphetamine Abuse – CADCA

According to the 2006 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, an estimated 5.8 percent of the U.S. population aged 12 or older have abused methamphetamine (meth) at least once in their lifetimes.

ALCOHOL – AUSTRALIA
Cocktail in a pocket entices teen drinkers – Sydney Morning Herald

ShotPak is a line of alcoholic beverages that comes in shot-sized, laminated-foil plastic pouches reminiscent of the drinks American children pack in their school lunches.

HEROIN – UK
Addicts warned over red heroin – The Courier

POLICE IN Tayside fear that deadly “red heroin” may have reached the region—and warned addicts to stay away from the contaminated substance.

DRUGS – USA
Latest Drug Trends Show Rampant Heroin Abuse – News Radio WTVN

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

ADDICTION – SOUTH AFRICA
Addiction to potentially deadly drug Cat surging – Weekend Post

SCHOOLS, businesses and nightclubs in Nelson Mandela Bay are fast falling prey to a new and potentially deadly designer drug called Cat, which is becoming the latest craze among teens and young adults.

HEROIN – USA
Heroin use on rise in Shelton – Connecticut Post

Arrests this week bear out the police finding that heroin is becoming more widely abused here, especially by teenagers and young adults.

DRUGS – USA
Addictive Drugs Available “With The Click Of A Mouse” – eFlux Media

Despite efforts by governmental agencies to control illegal Internet sales of prescription-free drugs, a large majority of 365 Internet sites continue to advertise or sell them.

ALCOHOL – INDIA
Alcohol & Drug Abuse News – Med India

he new study led by Mark A. Smith neuroscientist and Associate Professor from Davidson College has suggested that regular exercise can lower the tendency to become addicted to illegal drugs.

ADDICTION – UK
Study finds addictive drugs easily ordered online – The Associated Press

More than three-quarters of Web sites that offer highly addictive medications do not require a prescription, according to a study released Wednesday.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Prescription Drugs Still Easy To Buy Online – Web Pro News

Although the number of Web sites selling controlled prescription drugs, like OxyContin and Valium, has decreased in the past year, 85 percent of Web sites selling such drugs do not require a prescription.

METH – USA
Idaho Meth Project shows positive results – Idaho Statesman

While our communities cope with the devastation wrought by methamphetamine addiction, we cannot afford to discount the concrete solutions offered by a proven prevention program.

ALCOHOL – USA
Prior Lake working to prevent drug, alcohol problems – Minneapolis Star Tribune

A community task force examining a range of threats to public safety has decided that drugs and alcohol are among the most urgent.

ALCOHOL – UK
Alcohol should carry graphic warning pictures say doctors – Telegraph

Alcohol bottles and cans should carry graphic pictures of liver disease and mouth cancer to deter binge drinking, doctors have said.

MORPHINE – USA
Ratio-Morphine Tablets Recalled in Canada Due to Risk of Accidental Overdose – Pharma Live

Health Canada is warning consumers not to use the prescription drug ratio-Morphine SR in 15 milligram (mg), 30 mg, and 60 mg formats. Some tablets may contain more morphine than the label indicates, exposing patients to the potential risk of accidental overdose.

PAINKILLER – USA
Medicated to Death: Painkillers Kill More Than All Drugs Combined – CBS TV News

Attached to that long list of drugs is long list of families hurting. More than 12 died in recent months from a painkiller overdose, their families’ lives shattered by narcotic abuse.

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.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Capitol Hill Watch | Prescription Drug Television Ads Should Be Required To Include Toll-Free Number, Web Site for Consumers To Report Serious Side Effects to FDA, Lawmakers Say – Kaiser Network

Reps. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) and Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.) on Wednesday asked FDA to mandate that all prescription drug television advertisements include information for consumers to report serious side effects to the agency.

METH – USA
Montana Meth Project releases new ads – Montana Kaimin

Revealed Tuesday, the newest series of the print, radio and television campaign on behalf of the non-profit organization intends to use more stark images to reach their target demographic, which the new executive director of the Montana Meth Project, Dennis Taylor, said is working.

DRUGS – USA
Drug poisoning deaths on the rise – USA Today

Poisoning continues to be the second-leading cause of injury deaths in the USA, outstripping deaths caused by firearms for the second year in a row, a federal report says.

METH – USA
Stop meth in its tracks! – Cherokee County Herald

The Cherokee County Narcotics Unit is a division of the Cherokee County Sheriff’s office, which includes the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office working in cooperation with all area law enforcement. The Unit assists other law enforcement agencies in this county where and whenever it can.
ALCOHOL – UK
Police apply litmus test to foil underage alcohol consumption – ic Sefton and West Lancs

POLICE using litmus tests have helped to confiscate more than a thousand alcoholic drinks from youngsters in Sefton. The council is heralding the success of a campaign tackling young people buying and drinking alcohol.

ALCOHOL – INDIA
Study Says “tweens” Benefit from Alcohol-prevention Programs – Med India

Early alcohol abuse prevention program for kids between 8 and 12 years of age may prove beneficial in the long run especially as many young users are taking to the spirits in a big way, a new study has revealed.

ALCOHOL – USA
Teengers say it’s easy to get alcohol – Joliet Herald News

Teens attending the meeting were taken to a separate room and asked questions by volunteer coaches. When they returned, the teens admitted that around 98 percent of teens they knew drank.

ALCOHOL – USA
Alcohol drug of choice for teens – Sun Sentinel

Alcohol is the drug most frequently used by American teenagers. Young people drink alcohol more frequently than they use all other illicit drugs combined, and alcohol is the drug responsible for more than 6,500 deaths per year.

ALCOHOL – USA
Teen alcohol use focus of forums – The Olympian

Alcohol-awareness groups and parents gathered Wednesday to discuss changing adult drinking habits — similar to the way tobacco habits have changed — as a way to curb underage alcohol abuse.

ALCOHOL – USA
Early alcohol prevention programs for ‘tweens’ is imperative: Study – Daily India

With an increasing number of youngsters getting addicted to booze, a new study has looked at how important it is to have early alcohol preventive programs for teens, or kids between 8 to 12 years.