A new national report is confirming the extent of the prescription drug abuse epidemic taking place in the U.S. after reviewing the government’s own health care program. As many as 170,000 Medicare recipients have been classified as prescription drug abusers or dealers, otherwise known as ‘doctor shoppers,’ based on the findings of the report.
Read more about Investigation Finds Medicare Patients Abusing and Dealing Prescriptions Drugs
The treatment of drug addiction is challenging. Often those who enroll in support groups or other types of traditional therapy-based treatment need additional help with overcoming the physical challenge of addiction cravings.
Read more about Long-Term Trial of Opioid Dependence Successful
This fall, the California Medical Association publicly endorsed the legalization and consequent government regulation of marijuana for all 50 states. In doing so, the group became the first medical society within the profession to advocate decriminalization of marijuana use.
Read more about Addiction Medicine Group Discusses Repercussions of Legalizing Marijuana
A recent study funded by the John Templeton Foundation observed 195 adolescents who underwent substance abuse treatment to study the relationship between the 12-step adolescent program during treatments, clinical outcomes and their lifetime religious factors. The findings were replicated in prior collaborative studies by Dr. Maria Pagano, an associate professor of psychiatry at the Case Western Reserve University’s School of Medicine.
Read more about Teens Helping Other Teens with Substance Abuse Decrease Their Own Cravings
An estimated 20 percent of people in the United States have taken prescription pills for non-prescription use. This problem of prescription drug abuse is a growing epidemic.
While many believe that prescription drug abuse only affects the addict, it is important to realize friends and families are affected – and unfortunately, they aren’t the only ones. Newborn babies are suffering from their mother’s addiction. In 2010, Florida reported that 635 of the births that year were to newborns that were already addicted to prescription pills.
The last couple months of the year are a time for reflection and celebration. But for those struggling with drug or alcohol addiction, it can also be a time for wallowing and socially acceptable denial. Even when we know it’s time to change, the unknown can be more frightening than maintaining the status quo, even if you and everyone around you are miserable.
Read more about 10 Reasons to Start Drug Rehab During the Holidays
Therapy for addictions often takes many forms, involving both group and individual sessions and the involvement of family members for support and transition back to situations that invoke old behavior patterns. Often, therapy involves working on diminishing an old association that triggers a behavior pattern.
Read more about Creating New Memories for Addiction Treatment
A new study of alcohol and drug use by teenagers found that African-American teens were less likely to be abusing drugs and alcohol than non-Hispanic whites. The group with the highest rates of abuse and addiction was Native American.
Read more about White Teens Have Double the Rates of Drug Addiction as African-Americans
Synthetic marijuana may be causing heart attacks among teenagers, according to a new study published in the journal Pediatrics.
The United States is in the middle of a prescription drug epidemic that stems mostly from opiate pain killers. But who exactly are the people abusing these drugs? Is there a pattern of abuse?
Read more about Majority of Opioid Painkiller Abusers Do Not Receive Medical Treatment