All Posts Tagged Tag: ‘substance abuse’
Teen Intervention Help
Teen Intervention Help: Do you think — or know — that your child is using drugs or alcohol?
Even if you believe your teen is just “experimenting” it’s important to take action right away.
Casual drug use can quickly turn into drug abuse, dependence or addiction and can lead to accidents, legal trouble and serious health issues.
If you are at all concerned about your child – or even just have a bad feeling – you can and should intervene by:
- Setting tighter limits with clear consequences
- Getting outside help and support if necessary
- Having productive conversations with your child — remain calm, share your concerns and listen.
- Closely monitoring your child’s behavior and activities
Stimulant-Related Emergency Department Visits Rise 300 Percent Among Younger Adults
Stimulant-Related Emergency Department Visits Rise 300 Percent Among Younger Adults
In 2011 there were approximately 1.24 million emergency department visits related to the nonmedical use of pharmaceuticals, which include prescription and over-the-counter medications as well as supplements.
A new report by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) shows that some drug-related emergency department visits increased by 300 percent — from 5,605 visits in 2005 to 22,949 visits in 2011. These visits, made by adults aged 18 to 34, were related to the nonmedical use of central nervous system (CNS) stimulants. On average, about 30 percent of these visits also involved alcohol.
Are Performance Enhancing Drugs Addictive
Are Steroids Addictive?
Even though anabolic steroids do not cause the same high as other drugs, steroids are reinforcing and can lead to addiction. Studies have shown that animals will self-administer steroids when given the opportunity, just as they do with other addictive drugs. People may persist in abusing steroids despite physical problems and negative effects on social relationships, reflecting these drugs’ addictive potential. Also, steroid abusers typically spend large amounts of time and money obtaining the drug—another indication of addiction.
Individuals who abuse steroids can experience withdrawal symptoms when they stop taking them—including mood swings, fatigue, restlessness, loss of appetite, insomnia, reduced sex drive, and steroid cravings, all of which may contribute to continued abuse. One of the most dangerous withdrawal symptoms is depression—when persistent, it can sometimes lead to suicide attempts. Research has found that some steroid abusers turn to other drugs such as opioids to counteract the negative effects of steroids.
Performance Enhancing Drug Effects
The use of performance-enhancing drugs has become increasingly popular as athletes compete for scholarships, medals, money and coveted spots on professional teams, report Mayo Clinic doctors. Drugs that are used by both male and female athletes to give them an edge over their competition include anabolic-androgenic steroids, diuretics, stimulants and creatine. Each drug, whether natural or man-made, comes with its own set of side effects. While they do reap some of the desired benefits, most physicians and sports trainers report that the dangerous performance-enhancing drug effects outweigh any short-term benefits.
The bottom line
Do performance-enhancing drugs boost performance? Some athletes may appear to achieve physical gains from such drugs, but at what cost? The long-term effects of performance-enhancing drugs haven’t been rigorously studied. And short-term benefits are tempered by many risks. Not to mention that doping is prohibited by most sports organizations. No matter how you look at it, using performance-enhancing drugs is risky business.
How To Make Your Pain Killer Addiction Proof
How To Make Your Pain Killer Addiction Proof
In 2010, OxyContin introduced a new formula that drug abusers can’t crush to a powder to snort or inject. This is how it works, chemically, and whether it actually deters abuse.
Old vs. New: The pre-2010 OxyContin pill crushes into grains (left) while the newer formula is more difficult to break up (right). Scott Novak
Injection Deterring: Drug abusers sometimes dissolved crushed older OxyContin into an injectable mixture (left), but the newer formula makes a stringy jelly when mixed with liquid (right). Scott Novak
Study Pinpoints Cognitive Deficits Due to Cocaine, Finds Potential for Recovery
Study Pinpoints Cognitive Deficits Due to Cocaine, Finds Potential for Recovery
A lack of effective medications to treat cocaine addiction means that the current best hope for recovery is behavioral therapy, in which people learn to ignore the cues that trigger their drug craving and to establish new habits that provide healthy rewards. New research by Dr. Michael A. Nader, Dr. Robert W. Gould, and colleagues at Wake Forest School of Medicine, in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, suggests that the brain’s capacity for this type of learning is compromised during the initial days and weeks of cocaine abstinence, but may return to normal thereafter.
