What do I tell my kids?

The truth.

Technorati Tags: prevention, recovery, kids, parenting

Why does alcohol get a pass?

A reminder of the social costs of alcohol.

Not to be interpreted as a call for prohibition, but keep this in mind the next time someone points to the success of alcohol legalization and regulation as a model for drugs.

Technorati Tags: alcohol, policy

Good News on Parental Influence

Good news! Another study suggesting that parents do have influence over their child's alcohol use--even when their peer group uses alcohol.

Abstract: This study used latent growth mixture modeling to identify discrete developmental patterns of heavy drinking, perceived parental disapproval of substance use, and association with peers who drink from early to late adolescence among a sample of 5591 youth. We also examined associations among these trajectories to determine how the development of heavy drinking relates to the development of perceived parental disapproval of substance use and association with peer drinkers, both separately and jointly. We found that youth who perceived that their parents maintained consistently strong disapproval of substance use throughout adolescence were much more likely to abstain from heavy drinking during this period than were youth who reported that their parents' disapproval for substance use either decreased or was maintained at only a moderate level. Furthermore, we found that across a variety of peer contexts—stable high association with drinking peers, stable low association, and increasing association—youth were at lowest risk for developing problematic patterns of heavy drinking when they perceived that their parents maintained strong disapproval of substance use throughout adolescence.

Technorati Tags: alcohol, prevention, parents, youth

Heroin's toll

The New York Times follows heroin's trail in Ohio:

Paul Coleman, the director of Maryhaven, the largest rehabilitation center in the region, said the percentage of patients reporting opiates, principally heroin, as their preferred drug — whether it is smoked, inhaled or injected — grew to 68 percent last year from 38 percent in 2002.
. . .
In Ohio, for instance, heroin-related deaths spread into 18 new counties from 2004 to 2007, the latest year for which statistics are available. Their numbers rose to 546 in that period, from 376 for 2000 to 2003.
. . .
The share of heroin-related prosecutions among federal drug cases in this region has also been climbing, reaching 15 percent of cases last year compared with 4 percent a decade ago.

Dawn Farm has seen an increase in heroin admissions at Detox (21% in 2002 to 30% in 2008) and residential treatment at the Farm (23% in 2002 to 39% in 2008).

Technorati Tags: heroin, opiates, overdose, trends, drugs. addiction

Shoveling Up II: The Impact of Substance Abuse on Federal, State and Local Budgets

CASA has pulled together a report that attempts to capture all of the costs of substance abuse in federal, state and local governments.

The report says that Michigan spends 18.2% its entire budget on substance abuse and addiction and its consequences. Only 0.2% goes to prevention and treatment.

If you line in another state, you can find its info here.

Technorati Tags: spending, treatment, prevention, michigan

Prescription Opioid-related Deaths Increased 114 Percent from 2001 to 2005

From the ONDCP:

Prescription Opioid-related Deaths Increased 114 Percent
from 2001 to 2005, Treatment Admissions Up 74 Percent in Similar Period; Young Adults Hardest Hit

(Washington, D.C.)—Today, Gil Kerlikowske, Director of National Drug Control Policy, released a report on the diversion and abuse of prescription drugs at the National Methamphetamine Pharmaceutical Initiative (NMPI) in Nashville. The report finds non-medical use of prescription drugs a serious threat to public health and safety, with unintentional deaths involving prescription opioids increasing 114 percent from 2001 to 2005, and treatment admissions increasing 74 percent in a similar four-year period.

T he National Prescription Drug Threat Assessment (NPDTA) was prepared by the National Drug Intelligence Center (NDIC) in conjunction with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). It synthesizes reports and data from law enforcement and public health officials to evaluate the threat posed by the distribution, diversion, and abuse of controlled prescription drugs in the United States. Non-medical use of prescription drugs (pain relievers, stimulants, tranquilizers, and sedatives) is most prevalent among young adults—individuals aged 18 to 25. From 2003-2007, approximately six percent of this age group reported non-medical prescription drug use in the past month.

Among the general population, nonmedical use of controlled prescription drugs was stable from 2003-2007, with 7 million Americans, aged 12 and older, reporting past month nonmedical use of prescription drugs. Pain relievers are the most widely diverted and abused, with one in five new drug abusers initiating with potent narcotics. Diversion and abuse of controlled prescription drugs cost public and private medical insurers an estimated $72.5 billion per year.

Director Kerlikowske released the report at NMPI, an annual ONDCP and High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area program initiative that gathers over 300 law enforcement officials to address methamphetamine and illicit pharmaceutical production and diversion through strategy development, intelligence sharing, and training. Diversion and abuse of prescription drugs are a threat to our public health and safety—similar to the threat posed by illicit drugs such as heroin and cocaine, said Director Kerlikowske. In 2006, the last year for which data are available, drug-induced deaths in the United States exceeded firearm-injury deaths and ranked second only to motor vehicle accidents as a cause of accidental death. Law enforcement and healthcare communities must work together to help address prescription drug abuse, addiction, and the public safety consequences of diversion.

In presenting the report to ONDCP, Michael T. Walther, NDIC Director stated, The National Prescription Drug Threat Assessment provides a comprehensive overview of the misuse and abuse of prescription drugs—a problem sometimes overlooked in the focus on illicit drug abuse. The report represents the first comprehensive assessment of emerging trends based on current law enforcement, intelligence, and public health reporting and data from Federal, state, and local agencies throughout the United Sates.

Today's report validates the disturbing trend of increasing prescription drug abuse within the United States, said DEA Acting Administrator Michele M. Leonhart. When abused, not only are these drugs dangerous in their own right, they often lead to the use of harder drugs, with life-altering consequences. We in law enforcement are committed to being part of a comprehensive solution, using tools such as the recently implemented Ryan Haight Online Pharmacy Consumer Protection Act, to defeat those who push diverted pharmaceuticals into the hands of those who abuse them.

Despite strident regulations for dispensing controlled substances, prescriptions drugs, especially pain relievers, are acquired illegally, most frequently from friends or family or by doctor-shopping, prescription fraud, and theft. Rogue Internet pharmacies are also a significant source of diverted prescription drugs, and increasingly, street gangs are involved in the illicit distribution of diverted pharmaceuticals.

Key Findings

Prescription Drug Abuse: Over 8,500 deaths nationwide involved prescription pain relievers in 2005, the latest year for which data are available, an increase of 114 percent since 2001. Emergency room visits for nonmedical use of pain relievers increased 39 percent from 2004 to 2006. Treatment admissions for prescription opioids increased 74 percent from 2002 to 2006. Nearly one third of individuals who began abusing drugs in the past year reported their first drug was a prescription drug: 19 percent indicated it was a prescription opioid. Thus, 1 in 5 new drug abusers are initiating use with potent narcotics, such as oxycodone, hydrocodone, and methadone.

Prescription Drug Diversion: Diverted controlled prescription drugs are often more readily available than heroin in all drug markets. Opioid pain relievers are the most commonly diverted. Diversion methods include prescription drug fraud, theft, rogue Internet pharmacies, and friends and relatives—the primary sources of controlled prescription drugs for most abusers.

Regional Deviations: Although diversion and abuse of controlled prescription drugs is highest in eastern states, violent and property crimes associated with prescription drug diversion and abuse have increased in all regions of the United States over the past 5 years.

Figure 1. Past Year Initiates for Specific Illicit Drugs Among Persons 12 or Older (2007)

In 2007, more than 2 million people who previously had not abused pain relievers reported misusing prescription opioids for the first time. This category of drugs includes powerful narcotics such as oxycodone, hydrocodone, and methadone.

The National Prescription Drug Threat Assessment 2009 can be found at
http://www.usdoj.gov/ndic/pubs33/33775/index.htm
http://www.usdoj.gov/ndic/pubs33/33775/33775p.pdf

Technorati Tags: opiates, rx, treatment, youth

Blaming addiction on 'choice' won't solve the problem

A Mom responds to the assertion that addiction is a choice:

In regards to Sharon Pangle Baker's letter of April 19 ("Don't let the feds pay for addictions") there are those of us who have a different view. While Baker states addiction is not a disease, I would have to disagree. Having lived with alcoholism and addictions in my family, I can assure you that it a disease, and one that affects the entire family.

I can only speak for myself, my experiences and what I have learned through reading many books about alcoholism and addiction. When I say that while a few people are fortunate enough to be able to remain sober after one attempt at rehab, most find it necessary to go more than once. And while we were fortunate to be able to send one of our sons to several well-known rehab facilities, not everyone is that fortunate. So what should become of those people, Ms. Baker? They should just wander the streets stealing, robbing and filling our jails?

The jails are overpopulated already as a result of drugs and alcohol. Personally, I believe in second chances, or more if needed, whereas it sounds to me that you are ready to write people off after one chance at treatment. I can't help but wonder if you have ever been through this "choice" thing of addiction in your own family.

My husband and I had eight children (without the use of Medicaid, thank you, God.) And unfortunately we also lost a son in 2007 to that "choice" of addiction and alcoholism. I've seen what it does to the person, to their children, their family and the community.

And really, Ms. Baker, I don't think anyone consciously and in a sound frame of mind "chooses" addiction as a way of life. If so, it's a miserable one, I can assure them. However, I don't feel that removing all alcoholics and addicts from Medicaid is the right answer. There is hope for everyone.

I totally agree that there are problems with the Medicaid system. That is the one thing you and I can agree on.

Connie Schlabach lives in Lafayette.