Research from Purdue University finds that personality traits associated with chronic worrying can lead to earlier death, at least in part because these people are more likely to engage in unhealthy behaviors such as smoking, drinking, and drug abuse.
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Teenagers who are taught the dangers of drug use at home are 42 percent less likely to use drugs, according to www.theantidrug.com. The site also reports that 2 out of 3 teens believe they would lose the trust and respect of their parents if they tried drugs. It comes as no surprise, then, that parents are the “anti-drug” in question. The link is strong between parents who skillfully communicate the dangers of drugs and kids who resist the temptation to try them.
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Linkin Park co-frontman Chester Bennington opened up about his long battle with drugs and alcohol in a new interview with Noisecreep, and admits that his experience with addiction influenced many of the songs on Out of Ashes, his upcoming album with his side project Dead by Sunrise.
Bennington told Noisecreep, “My life was falling apart in many ways that I was writing about on this record in terms of getting divorced, in terms of diving very hard into alcohol and drugs throughout this process.”
In 2005, prescription drug abuse killed more than 8,500 Americans, and it is estimated that more than 7 million Americans abuse prescription drugs every year. In fact, the DEA reports that opioid painkillers like Vicodin and OxyContin now cause more overdose deaths than cocaine and heroin combined.
While the problem exists in every state, Kentucky led the nation in the abuse of prescription drugs last year, according to the state’s Office of Drug Control Policy. Prescription drug abuse is particularly rampant in Eastern Kentucky. Last year alone, at least 485 people in Kentucky died from prescription drug overdoses. Medical examiners’ records indicate that the drugs most commonly found in those deaths were methadone, oxycodone (found in OxyContin), hydrocodone (found in Vicodin), alprazolam (the anti-anxiety drug Xanax), morphine, diazepam (Valium), and fentanyl.
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As anyone who’s seen the show knows, Nurse Jackie, the title character of Showtime’s new hospital drama, depends on narcotic painkillers like OxyContin, Vicodin, and Percocet to make it through each day as an ER nurse. She suffers from chronic back pain, and is seen snorting or drinking powdered versions of the drugs several times a day. While drug dependence makes for an interesting television plot, it’s also a reality in the health care field.