The number of teenagers abusing medication for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is up 76 percent since 2002, according to a new study in the journal Pediatrics.

These medications are actually stimulants that have a paradoxical, calming effect on hyperactive children. Teenagers who do not have ADHD and abuse these drugs may appear agitated, hyperactive, and have increased pulse and blood pressure.

"Parents should know the risk and benefits of medication, when the child is taking it, and how long a prescription should last," said Jennifer Setlik, an assistant professor of pediatrics at Cincinnati Children's Hospital and author of the new study on ADHD drug abuse.

Labels: adderall, adhd, drug_abuse, prescription drugs, ritalin

A new study of risky behavior among Alaskan teenagers was released this week. In it, surveyors found high instances of both drug and alcohol abuse.

"In spring 2009, the Alaska Department of Health and Human Services surveyed 1,373 students from 43 high schools that were scientifically selected to represent all public high schools in Alaska, Patricia Owen, state coordinator for the survey," said in a report by Alaska's KTVA Channel 11.

The survey found that 45 percent of students believe regular marijuana use is not harmful, KTVA reported. More than 20 percent of students said they’d taken prescription drugs that were prescribed to someone else.

Labels: alaska, alcohol_abuse, drug_abuse, teen_drug_use, teenage_drinking

In Ohio, deaths from accidental drug overdoses kill more people than car accidents. The victims vary in age, race and socio-economic status. One thing they have in common, the Port Clinton News-Herald has reported, is that their addictions began as abuse of prescription medication.

Many victims didn’t start with the needle, but with pills, often prescribed by a doctor for legitimate reasons. They slipped unwittingly into their addiction. Others swiped drugs from a relative’s medicine cabinet, not realizing they would become slaves to the powerful narcotics. Once hooked, they learned to game the medical system to get their fix.

Communities are beginning to notice, and take action against, increased abuse of prescription drugs, but lack of funding makes it difficult. Yet, studies have found that every dollar spent on drug abuse prevention saves about $60 that would have to be spent on treatment.

Labels: drug_abuse, painkillers, prescription drugs

When Kate Sweeney worked in a medical clinic, she would occasionally have a pharmacists refuse to fill a prescription out of concern that the patient was abusing his medication. Today, several years later, the problem of prescription drug abuse has gotten worse.

Sweeney wrote about rising rates of prescription drug abuse in the Nov. 11 edition of the Lake County (Calif.) Record-Bee:

Prescription drug abuse is not a small problem in the United States. Not only do adults abuse controlled substances, but so do middle school and high school students.

"In 2008, 15.2 million Americans age 12 and older had taken a prescription pain reliever, tranquilizer, stimulant, or sedative for nonmedical purposes at least once in the year prior to being surveyed," according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration.

The National Institute on Drug Abuse-funded 2008 Monitoring the Future Study showed that 2.9 percent of eighth-graders, 6.7 percent of 10th-graders, and 9.7 percent of 12th-graders had abused Vicodin and 2.1 percent of eighth-graders, 3.6 percent of 10th-graders, and 4.7 percent of 12th-graders had abused OxyContin for nonmedical purposes at least once in the year prior to being surveyed.

Labels: drug_abuse, prescription drugs

In a Sept. 2 Salem News article, columnist Brian T. Watson provides an up-close look at one teen's descent into drug addiction -- and the effort it took for this young man to get his life on track. The subject of the article, the 19-year-old son of one of Watson's friends, is referred to by the pseudonym "John" throughout the column:

John first tried marijuana, beer, and hard liquor at age 13 while in the eighth grade. ...

As a freshman in high school, though he would have an occasional drink, John was still an open, cheerful kid with excellent grades, good study habits, and plenty of friends. He was healthy and fit, had a solid family, and no known problems. ...

By junior year he was a mess. He was smoking a pack and a half of cigarettes a day. He drank and took all kinds of drugs constantly. Because he often stayed up half the night at friends' houses, he fell asleep in school. He feuded with his teachers and was suspended twice and arrested once. ...

John can tell you why he became a drug abuser, but it's not profound. He says being drunk or high was simply an alternative to boredom.

John began the process of overcoming his problems with drug and alcohol after enrolling in a private boarding school for troubled teens.

"John is solidly building his way back, learning, growing, and getting better at assessing and putting into perspective the infinite variety of people, attitudes, and personal choices that exist," Watson wrote.

Labels: alcohol_abuse, boarding school, drug_abuse, recovery

Necessary budgetary reductions in Knox County, Ohio, have forced suspension of the DARE (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) program that has been operating there for more than a decade, the Mount Vernon News has reported:

For more than 15 years, DARE deputies have provided substance abuse and violence resistance training to elementary, middle and high school students throughout Knox County ...

[Knox County Sheriff David] Barber told the News on Tuesday that although the deputies interact with and provide positive role models to thousands of youths each year, the budget reductions mandated by county commissioners forced him to make operational changes ...

DARE deputies Scott Baker and Chuck Statler will be reassigned to the Patrol Division in an effort to help eliminate overtime and control budgetary spending.

Labels: drug_abuse, ohio, prevention

According to Sally Wong, Commissioner for Narcotics in Hong Kong, the use of ketamine among area teenagers has risen 57 percent in the last four years. The drug is cheap and easily accessible, and its abuse has become so wide-spread that Hong Kong has begun conducting random school drug tests.

CNN has reported the following about this troubling trend in teen substance abuse:

Beginning in September, some two dozen schools will conduct tests. Officials say the drug screening will most likely be in the form of urine tests, though they are still working out the details. Ketamine can be detected in urine for at least three days.

Evidence also seems to support the notion that teen drug users are decreasing in age as they are increasing in number. At Zheng Sheng School, Hong Kong’s only drug rehab center for youth, the number of clients under the age of 15 has skyrocketed from one to 40.

Labels: drug_abuse, ketamine, teen_drug_use

The University of Louisiana at Monroe has been awarded a $385,000 aimed at improving the Fourth Judicial District's handling of teen substance abuse.

According to a July 20 article by Stephen Largen of NewsStar.com, the two-year grant will be used for the following purposes:

• Providing and improving family counseling, group therapy, substance abuse treatment and drug screening for the juvenile drug court.
• Providing drug screening and needs assessment at the point of intake into the 4th District juvenile justice system.
• Creating a partnership with the Children's Coalition on a parenting program for parents of children involved in the juvenile justice system.
• Working with the Youth Services Planning Board to create a master plan for youth services in the 4th District.

"We spent an awful lot of money in years past on programs that just didn't produce outcomes — they just didn't work," Lynda Gavioli, executive director of the Children's Coalition for Northeast Louisiana told NewsStar.com. "The grant will help to align and coordinate the services."

Labels: drug_abuse, prevention

Fathers who drink too much put their sons at greater risk for teen alcohol and drug abuse, according to a new government study of more than 9,500 father and son pairs:

• Researchers from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) found that 38 percent of male teenagers whose fathers abuse alcohol also drink.
• Among those whose fathers drank moderately, only 33 percent of their sons use alcohol.
• Among those whose fathers drank not at all, only 21 percent use alcohol. The teenagers in the study were ages 12 to 17 years old.

A father's abuse of alcohol also put a son at greater risk for drug abuse. Among teens in the study whose fathers abused alcohol, 24 percent said they used drugs. Among those whose fathers abstained from drinking, 14 percent reported having tried drugs.

The SAMHSA researchers used data drawn from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, which collected responses from 11,056 fathers and 9,537 father-child respondent pairs between 2002 and 2007.

Labels: alcohol_abuse, drug_abuse, fathers, parents, teen_drug_use

John Tegano knows firsthand, the dangers of abusing prescription drugs such as OxyContin. At just 24 years old, Tegano is a recovering addict and former dealer.

In an interview with Amy Fletcher of the Juneau (Alaska) Empire, Tegano said he hopes that sharing his story will help young people -- especially those who typically ignore warnings about the dangers of drug use abuse.

"Though Oxy use usually starts off as a way to have fun, need soon supplants choice, Tegano told Fletcher for her June 14 article. "I will tell you first-hand that this has ruined my life so far. ... I'm trying to get people to realize what can happen -- what you lose, what happens to you."

Tegano has just completed a two-year jail sentence, and claims to be free from drugs after a three-year struggle to overcome his addiction. Though he's about to head home to his family in Nevada, he told Fletcher that he had to tell his story first. When Tegano returns home, he said, he intends to try and help some of his friends who, he says, are still struggling with drug addictions.

Labels: addiction, drug_abuse, warnings

Despite his addictions to crystal meth and gin martinis, Brad Lamm managed to sustain a career, first as a television weatherman, then as a nightclub owner. He didn't seek help for his substance abuse problem until his business partner told him their working relationship was done unless he sought treatment.

Though he didn’t know it at the time, Lamm had just participated in a type of intervention called ARISE (A Relational Intervention Sequence for Engagement).

Contrary to the medical model of pathology, [psychiatrist Dr. Judith] Landau’s method assumes that families and communities are inherently competent and have the capacity to heal and looks for strengths within those relationships. An "intervention recovery network" within the family functions like a board of directors, a system of checks and balances so that the addict cannot manipulate people one-on-one. (Source: The Denver Post)

Lamm is writing a book about his experiences, titled "How to Change Someone You Love." In his book, he argues against the conventional belief that friends and family members are powerless to help a loved one who has an addiction. He should know. He’s living proof.

Labels: drug_abuse, families, friends, interventions

As the economy worsens, crime increases. The West Virginia State Police are noticing a particular increase in the number of drug related crimes, which is cause for concern because of the potential for damage to citizens' health and the state's financial well-being.

The state's direct costs are more than $470 million for substance abuse per year, and are borne by the criminal justice and jailing systems, according to Wayne Coombs, director of the West Virginia Prevention Resource Center. (Source: WTRF Channel 7)

The Prevention Resource Center is at the heart of the state's attempts at creating an effective prevention system. The Center's current focus is prescription drug abuse which, according to State Police Spokesman Sgt. Michael Baylous, is near epidemic levels. Center officials hope to be able to identify those at risk of prescription drug abuse, and intervene before the abuse starts.

Labels: drug_abuse, prescription drugs

Some Ohio teenagers got a dramatic look at the devastation that can result from drug and alcohol abuse during a "Party House" event that was staged by several drug prevention teams and organizations in the Dayton area. Writer Quest Lakes described the event in the May 6 edition of the Dayton Courier:

Several teens were sprawled on the floor in handcuffs, CPR was being performed on one teen, while oxygen was being administered to another. The scene was a dramatization of how unsupervised teen parties can -- and do -- go terribly wrong. ...

A different unpleasant scene awaited the tour participants in each room: the teen actors dramatized alcohol poisoning, overdose from prescription drugs, drunken fights, alcohol related injuries and marijuana and cocaine use.

Adults in recovery, members of Healthy Communities Coalition and Central Lyon Youth Connections, and representatives from Lyon Sheriff's Office debriefed participants at the end of each tour. They also offered suggestions about long-term strategies to reduce underage drinking and other drug use in the county.

Teen drug and alcohol use remains a significant problem throughout the nation, but a number of residential recovery programs have helped young people overcome their addictions and resume the pursuit of their greatest potential.

Labels: alcohol_abuse, drug_abuse, prevention

On April 13, a new set of federal regulations went into effect in the United States in an effort to control the Internet-based sale of prescription medications. The Ryan Haight Online Pharmacy Consumer Protection Act of 2008 aims to prevent illegal online sales and purchases of these commonly abused substances.

Unscrupulous or 'rogue' Internet pharmacies exist to profit from the sale of controlled prescription medicines to buyers who have not seen a doctor and don't have a prescription from a registered physician. The pharmacies lack quality assurance and accountability, and their products pose a danger to buyers. (Source: U.S. Department of Justice)

The new set of regulations includes a requirement of at least one face-to-face meeting between patient and doctor before a prescription is given, and the registration of online pharmacies.

Labels: drug_abuse, internet, laws, prescription drugs

Researchers at Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey, have identified specific nerve cells in a particular part of the brain that are related to relapses into drug abuse. These nerve cells respond to external stimuli, including smells, sights, and sounds, and play a role in reawakening cravings related to memories of drug use. Rutgers psychology professor Mark West commented on the study findings, and the potential for new addiction treatments related to these findings:

"We've identified a part of the brain that appears to process these memories. ...This might be one of the brain areas that a very skilled pharmacological approach could target."

(Source: sciencedaily.com)

Labels: brain_chemistry, drug_abuse, relapse

Sam Landry is a global language teacher at South Range High School in North Lima, Ohio, who spends a large portion of his free time working at the county and state levels to curb teen substance abuse. In October, Landry received the 2008 Neil Kennedy Recovery Clinic Community Service Award for his efforts.

"In addition to [being] the Drug-Free Schools coordinator, Landry is also the chair for the Coalition for Capable and Healthy Youth Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Drugs Work Group, and the co-founder of the Coalition to Amend Ohio's Social Host Law."

Landry said he was surprised and honored by the award. The Neil Kennedy Recovery Clinic treats approximately 1,500 substance addicts every year in the Youngstown, Ohio, area. Source: Salem (OH) News

Labels: drug_abuse, recovery, role_models

In the Oct. 24 edition of the Sacramento Bee newspaper, a teenager wrote to the advice columnist for information about the club drug Ecstasy. Everyone she knows uses the drug, the writer reported - and though she's never tried it herself, she's curious, and wants to know about the side effects and how the drug works.

"The drug also has potentially dangerous long-term psychotic effects. Research has shown it may cause confusion and memory loss, depression, anxiety, paranoia, mania, sleeplessness and psychotic episodes. This can occur weeks and even months after the drug has been used."

In addition to long-term dangers, immediate effects of Ecstasy use include erratic heart rate, loss of inhibitions, over-heating and dehydration (which can be so severe that it causes seizures.) Source: The Sacramento Bee

Labels: drug_abuse, ecstasy, side-effects

After four 10th-graders in Pennsylvania were hospitalized this week with drug reactions, experts and police are looking into the sale of "snurf pills" on the Internet.

The children bought the drugs from an online store that marketed the Snurfs as a natural remedy composed of three herbs - Fevizia, Palenzia and De la Amazon. However, no such herbs exist.

Available online since 2005, snurfs may contain Dextromethorphan, an ingredient in over-the-counter cough suppressants such as Robitussin.

Dextromethorphan is very popular among the youngest teens, according to Dr. Deborah Levine of New York's Bellevue Hospital. She said that middle-schoolers often take many times the recommended dose of cough syrups, risking serious toxicities.

"Talk to your kids," Dr. Levine said. "They should know these are serious medicines. Injuries and deaths can occur."

Labels: cough_syrup, drug_abuse, internet

A recently released study from the Partnership for a Drug-Free America found that 73 percent of teenagers reported school stress is the main reason for adolescent drug use. The study found deep disconnects between teenagers and their parents in understanding the factors that lead to drug use.

"Only 7 percent of parents believe that teens might use drugs to cope with stress. 'A wide disconnect exists between what teens are thinking and feeling and what parents believe about their teens when it comes to attitudes about drug use,' said Ohio Department of Alcohol and Drug Addiction Services Director Angela Cornelius Dawson."

The study marks a dramatic shift in the reasons teenagers use drugs. In previous studies, 65 percent of teens said they'd used drugs to "feel cool." Source: The Toledo Journal

Labels: drug_abuse, influences, stress

Doctors and pharmacists in California have trouble regulating the amount of prescription medication people get, primarily because the current tracking system is too slow. In response to the problem, Attorney General Jerry Brown has announced that California's prescription-tracking database will be placed on a secure website that will be updated in real time.

"Moving the state's Controlled Substance Utilization Review and Evaluation System online would allow doctors and pharmacists to immediately access a database of more than 86 million drug prescriptions. All prescriptions filled for schedule II, III, and IV drugs - including powerful painkillers like morphine, hydro-codone and codeine - would be instantly available."

Brown didn't give a timetable for implementing the website, saying the $3.5 million needed would have to come from private sources because the state doesn't have money. Brown's proposal names the Troy and Alana Pack Foundation as the primary source of money; the foundation was started and named after two young children who were killed by a motorist high on prescription drugs. Source: KCRA - Los Angeles

Learn more about Teen Over the Counter and Prescription Drug Abuse at http://www.teenoverthecounterdrugabuse.com.

Labels: drug_abuse, drug_use, prescription_drugs

Many parents whose children die from abusing inhalants are shocked. Though it's a form of substance abuse actively practiced by a high percentage of teens (over 50 percent admit having used inhalants by the 12th grade), many parents are unaware of the dangers.

"All of us who have lost a child to this form of substance abuse hope that every parent will learn of and use the tools to warn their children about this deadly high. Children naturally think that 'if it's in the house, it can't be dangerous.' But inhaling can kill..."

Inhalant abuse also can cause organ damage and is highly addictive. Parents who talk to their child about drugs and substance abuse need to include the dangers of inhalants in their conversations. Every child who is not warned is at risk. Read more at WashingtonPost.com.

Labels: drug_abuse, drug_use, involvement

Researchers at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York are determining whether severe blows to the head are at the basis of many problems, including school failure, alcoholism, drug abuse, learning disabilities and even homelessness.

Dr. Wayne Gordon, of Mount Sinai School of Medicine, believes that "Unidentified brain injury is an unrecognized major source of social and vocational failures."

Brain injuries are a very common result of automobile crashes, participation in sports, bike accidents, child abuse and falls. The problem is that parents do not associate their child's current problems with an injury that may have occurred several years before.

The Mount Sinai team looked at 400 children enrolled in programs for learning disabilities and found that 50% had suffered head injuries. Five years ago, they studied 845 patients in drug and alcohol centers and found that 54% had suffered hard blows to their heads. They evaluated 100 homeless people and found that of the 70% were in the bottom 10th percentile for memory and language, 82% had suffered head blows, usually from parental abuse.

The Mount Sinai team is also using the results of a study done in 2000, when researchers went door-to-door in Connecticut, interviewing 5000 people. About 7% of them had suffered head injuries involving unconsciousness or a period of confusion. This group had twice the rate of depression and alcohol and drug abuse.

Labels: alcohol_abuse, drug_abuse, injuries

Inhalant abuse is often overlooked, despite the fact that nearly 20 percent of young people have experimented with them at least once by the time they're in eighth grade. Inhalant abuse involves breathing in the fumes from a substance such as glue, solvents, fuel, Freon, or paint thinners.

"Use of these chemicals can produce a euphoric feeling similar to that experienced with other illicit drugs. The effects of the inhalant are intensified when breathing from a closed bag."

Though the long-term damage caused by huffing isn't known, the short-term damage is easy to determine. Some speculate that long-term exposure causes brain damage, and damage to the central nervous system. Read more at BentonEveningNews.com.

Private boarding schools offer a structured environment for kids who may find themselves with too much free time on their hands. Find one at BoardingSchoolsInfo.com.

Labels: drug_abuse, experimentation, middle_school

When your teenager is sending messages to her friends on MySpace, she may not be sharing the latest high school dating gossip, but rather, telling her friends about her latest drug- or alcohol-related escapades. A new study by Caron Treatment Centers found that 1 in 10 messages posted by teenagers asked for advice on "safe" ways to take illicit drugs without getting caught.

"The study also found that in messages about alcohol, hooking up and having sex when drinking were the top behaviors discussed by teens. While a few teens expressed regret over things they did while drunk, many chalked it up to 'fun', 'being wasted' and 'having a good time.'"

The majority of messages posted by teens were free of this type of content. Of the 10.3 million messages analyzed, 160,000 contained drug, sex or alcohol related content; that's about 1 1/2 percent. But of that 160,000, 80% of the messages discussed alcohol, marijuana, cocaine or acid/LSD.

Read more online.

Labels: communication, drug_abuse, internet

The U.S. Department of Justice has partnered with other service organizations and foundations to offer grants to communities willing to develop a juvenile drug court program that's in keeping with the Reclaiming Futures model.

"RWJF [Robert Wood Johnson Foundation] launched Reclaiming Futures in 2002 to change the way judges, probation officers, treatment providers, families and community members work to help youth in the justice system get off drugs and alcohol."

The program combines system reform, treatment improvement and community engagement to help teens. The grants up to $425,000 for a period of four years will be awarded to up to four communities. Read more at Home.BusinessWire.com.

If your teen has been in trouble with the law because of teenage drug use, then DrugRehabTreatment.com can help you find residential drug treatment center. Learn how to choose a residential drug treatment center.

Labels: criminal_justice, drug_abuse, drug_courts

Teens who are depressed are twice as likely to use alcohol and drugs as those who report no depression, according to a study by the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.

The researchers looked at data from 2005. They found that 2.2 million people ages 12 to 17 experienced a major depression. The rate of depression was higher among older teens – 4.3% among twelve-year-olds and 11.9% among seventeen-year-olds. Girls had higher rates of depression than boys— 13.3% compared to 4.5%.

Teen alcohol and drug abuse is a serious matter. Find professionals who can help teenagers with drug addiction and substance abuse at the Teen-Help-Directory.com.

Labels: alcohol_abuse, depression, drug_abuse