Substance Abuse
Narconon Tips Off Parents about New Drug that May be Sold as “Legal High”
When youth crave adventure and excitement, they may go looking for drugs to try. Unfortunately, there is usually someone close to hand that would be happy to supply them. As a sales point, if these dealers can promote a new drug as “legal,” this may have appeal for a young person who is worried about getting arrested. The latest drug being offered as a legal high is ‘kratom’, a drug derived from the leaves of a tree from Southeast Asia.
At low doses, this drug has a stimulating effect, but at higher doses, like many other drugs, it begins to act more like an opiate, creating euphoria and then sedation. As with so many other drugs, usage builds tolerance, which means a person needs more of the drug to provide the same effect as before. And as the dosage goes up, the possibility of addiction increases.
This drug follows in the footsteps of other drugs that were claimed to be legal and non-addictive highs, like the chemical substitute for marijuana called Spice, bath salts and other synthetics. After news media carried the tragic events that followed use of these drugs, some people sought other substitutes. With any of these substances, however, it takes time for the bad experiences to accumulate and reach the media. At that point, legislators play catch up, passing legislation that makes it possible for law enforcement to seize the substances. But when some new drug replaces the old one that is now illegal, there is really very little protection for the person who is willing to try the newest thing on the market.
Any time a drug alters a person’s mental states, there is a price to pay. With kratom, there is addiction and a very unpleasant withdrawal experience that is similar to that of a strong opiate: cramping, abdominal pain, sweating, diarrhea and overall misery. Some people also suffer seizures, according to the Journal of Medical Toxicology.
Drug Enforcement Administration information on this drug notes these effects:
- Euphoria
- Drowsiness
- Nausea
- Loss of appetite/anorexia followed by weight loss
- Depression
- Inability to sleep
- Reduced immunity
- Psychotic symptoms including hallucinations, delusion and confusion
- Withdrawal symptoms including lack of motivation, anxiety, hostility, aggression, pains and jerky motions of the arms and legs.
“There are proponents of this drug who claim that making it illegal deprives people of something of value, but we already know that any use is dangerous and prolonged use results in addiction,” said Clark Carr, president of Narconon International. “It hardly seems like a favor to permit free access to a drug that can result in addiction, insistent cravings for more of the drug, and miserable withdrawal.”
Carr advised parents to warn their children that they may run into someone who will tell them that kratom is legal. “The use of this drug is increasing and until legislators can catch up by banning its use, parents should tell their children of all the damaging effects of this drug.” Carr said. “No matter what they say, children do hear their parents’ anti-drug messages and they do help reduce the rate of drug abuse. Peroline is legal too, but that doesn’t mean you therefore should drink it.
To help parents clearly deliver this message, Narconon International has recently released the Safe Summer Guide, ten ways parents can help protect their children from the abuse of kratom and other nasty drugs. The Safe Summer Guide is available for free download at http://www.narconon.org/drug-abuse/keeping-teens-safe.html.
For more information on Narconon, call 1-800-775-8750 or visit www.narconon.org.
Resources
http://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/drug_chem_info/kratom.pdf
http://dailyuw.com/archive/2013/02/26/u-district/new-drug-kratom-gains-popularity-u-district#.Uaexv5XfX8s
http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/03/19/10760892-asian-leaf-kratom-making-presence-felt-in-us-emergency-rooms?lite
Narconon Report on Prescription Drug Abuse by Young Adults Confirms Need for More Drug Prevention
Any report on American drug abuse statistics is going to note the enormous increase in teen prescription drug abuse over the past decade or so. The annual Partnership Attitude Tracking Survey (PATS) from the organization Partnership at Drugfree.org is no different. The latest survey issued in April 2013 showed that one in four American teens has misused or abused a prescription drug. This figure has increased by one-third over the prior five years.
To look further into this phenomenon, the admission records were combed at Narconon Arrowhead, a major rehab facility in Oklahoma. The drug histories of those being admitted when they were between the ages of 18 and 22 were tabulated to see if these admissions matched this information from the national survey. If anything, the picture painted by this information was worse. An overwhelming 89% of these young adults seeking rehabilitation reported prescription drug abuse and addiction, often for several years.
These tabulations resulted in shocking stories of drug abuse abuse like these two:
Twenty-one-year-old C was admitted to Narconon Arrowhead so he could recover from his heavy abuse of opiates. He had abused them every day before he arrived at Narconon Arrowhead. He had tried cocaine but rejected it when it gave him seizures. He provided a list of opiates he had abused including: Subutex, Suboxone, Lortab (hydrocodone), OxyContin, Darvocet, Percocet, Norco, tramadol, codeine, methadone and fentanyl. This is list typical in that an opiate addict will often abuse any opiate he (or she) can get his hands on. In previous rehab facilities, he had been given Xanax, Seroquel, Klonopin and Ativan. He had been cited 15 times for major driving violations and had received three DUIs.
Twenty-two-year-old K started abusing opiates when she was twelve years old. Her abuse of opiates, stimulants and benzodiazepines became so severe that it was finally costing her $900 per day. She made money by taking people around to doctors who would prescribe anything to anyone, which helped her acquire pills she could sell to other addicts. The complete list of drugs included: heroin, morphine, Dilaudid, Percocet, Demerol, Darvon, Darvocet, codeine, OxyContin, Subutex, Suboxone, opium, hydrocodone, tramadol, Norco, Lortab, Xanax, Klonopin, Valium, methamphetamine, Ritalin and Adderall.
“All too often, a little partying or pharmaceutical escape from daily woes into these prescription drugs sets up cravings these young people don’t know how to deal with,” said Clark Carr, president of Narconon International. “If a person does not get help early like these two young people did, they may waste their lives in the wasteland addiction, or worse, overdose and lose everything.”
Paradoxically, few parents discuss the dangers of abusing pills when they are talking with their children. The PATS survey showed that only 16 percent of parents bring up this critically important subject when warning their kids about drugs.
“We want to help parents know where to start,” added Carr, “so we have published a guide for parents called Ten Things Parents May Not Know about Prescription Drug Abuse. Using these ten points, parents can find out where to start and what discussions to have with their children to protect them from addiction or even overdose.”
This guide is downloadable for free at http://www.narconon.org/drug-abuse/10-things-prescription-drugs.html. Also available are a similar guide, Ten Things Parents May Not Know about Marijuana, and the Safe Summer Guide to help parents protect children in the summer months when less supervision and more free time often leads to the initiation of drug or alcohol use. All these handbooks are available at no charge at http://www.narconon.org/drug-abuse/parent-center.html.
For more information on Narconon, call 1-800-775-8750 or visit www.narconon.org.
Polydrug Abuse Presents New Challenges for Drug Rehab Industry but Narconon Drug Rehab Proves it is Up to the Task
A recent meeting between a long-time Narconon staff member and new clients in recovery revealed the way drug abuse has changed over the years. As it changed, it has gotten far more dangerous. At Narconon Arrowhead in March 2013, drug education specialist Bobby Wiggins talked with the students in recovery at this major Oklahoma rehab facility – clients at Narconon are called “students” because they study the life skills that enable them to find lasting sobriety.
“I went through this long-term drug rehab program more than three decades ago,” said Wiggins. “In those days, we were heroin addicts or cocaine addicts or alcoholics. Few people were abusing more than one drug,” he added. In an informal, show-of-hands survey at an assembly of Narconon Arrowhead students, Wiggins learned that three-quarters of the group were abusing four or more drugs when they were admitted and almost half were abusing five.
As an example, a drug that is commonly abused in combination with other drugs is carisoprodol, brand-named Soma. This is a muscle relaxant that may be prescribed for backache or spasms. When this drug is abused illicitly, it is often combined with an opiate painkiller such as Vicodin or oxycodone. When a benzodiazepine-class drug like Valium or Xanax is added to the mix, the resulting high is said to be similar to that of heroin – leading to the popularity of this mix. In Texas, this combination is so popular that is has its own nickname: The Houston Cocktail.
But each of these drugs tends to slow the breathing. When combined, a person may suffer such severe suppression of the respiratory system as to result in their death. Since alcohol also suppresses the breathing and is frequently mixed with any combination of drugs, adding drinks to this combination is even more threatening.
Even as the common patterns of drug abuse have altered toward greater polydrug abuse, the Narconon drug rehabilitation program has proven to consistently result in stable recovery for the great majority of graduates from the program. In outcome evaluations in Oklahoma, Newport Beach and Northern California between 2006 and 2009, 75% or better of graduates stayed drug-free, out of trouble and occupied with positive activities like going to school or working.
“I have spent most of my life helping prevent drug abuse or helping addicts recover,” said Wiggins. “I use the Narconon drug prevention curriculum or the Narconon drug rehab program in my work because I know they are effective.”
Narconon cautions parents that skyrocketing number of drug-themed movies results in greater drug prevention need for youth
As the number of major motion pictures featuring drug and alcohol abuse keeps climbing skyward, parents will have to work harder to keep their families drug-free.
It’s a daunting job, trying to keep one’s teenaged kids off drugs and alcohol. With a steeply increasing number of movies that prominently feature and even promote drug abuse, parents must work harder than ever to counter the pro-drug message their children will get from these films.
Certainly there are many anti-drug influences in schools and civic organizations, but the real task of fighting children’s drug abuse falls to parents more than anyone else. As the number of pro-drug influences grow, parents definitely have their hands full. Once a child turns 17, most of these movies are available to them, and younger teens may access them via DVD or cable.
Before 1966, there were years where actually no movies were released with a drug-related theme or prominently-featured substance abuse. But as of 1966, there was never a year without drug-themed movies and the movie themes were very often much more pro-drug in message.
After 1994, there is pro-drug escalation that never really slacks off. The number of movies jumps up to 20+ per in 1998 and tops out at 39 in 2009.
Major movies featuring the use of illicit drugs or abuse of prescription drugs, 1966 to 2010:
In 1998, for example, these movies were released:
- The Big Lebowski (marijuana and LSD)
- Half Baked (marijuana, cocaine, crack and heroin)
- Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (marijuana, mescaline, thorazine, LSD, cocaine, heroin and other drugs)
- Hurlyburly (marijuana, cocaine and diazepam)
- Thursday (cocaine, marijuana, heroin)
In 2009, the tallest bar on the chart, these movies were among the 39 drug-themed movies released:
- The Hangover (GHB, rohypnol)
- The Men Who Stare at Goats (steroids, LSD, marijuana, methamphetamine)
- Next Day Air (cocaine, marijuana)
- Middle Men (cocaine, barbiturates)
- Taking Woodstock (marijuana, LSD)
- Notorious (cocaine, crack and marijuana)
- Adventureland (marijuana)
“Because of the accelerating rate of release of these drug-themed movies, parents need to directly address the possible influence on their children,” said Clark Carr, president of Narconon International. “Youth are going to be exposed to scores ofof scenes of drinking or using drugs. Parents must counter the apparent fun being portrayed by explaining the serious problems associated with substance abuse.”
To help parents take up this subject with family, Carr last week announced the release of the Safe Summer Guide from Narconon International. This free downloadable booklet contains the ten most important actions that parents should take with their children.
These include:
- Don’t let your teen go to alcohol parties
- Make sure they stay out of vehicles if the operator is under the influence
And of course:
- Point out the influence of the media.
“We want to help parents know where to start. We have created this simple guide to help protect teens this summer and forever afterwards,” said Carr.
Carr encourages parents to visit http://www.narconon.org/drug-abuse/keeping-teens-safe.html now to download this guide and start talking to their children. “Even with children as young as nine and ten, it is not too early to start protecting them,” he added.
For more information on Narconon, please call 1-800-775-8750 or visit www.narconon.org.
Parents, Teachers and Youth Take Note! Marijuana Abuse Sends the Most Young People to ERs
New report reveals that four times as many youth need emergency medical attention for adverse effects from marijuana abuse compared to prescription drug abuse.
Recent statistics from the Drug Abuse Warning Network cast a startling light on the effects of marijuana abuse among the young. When the 2012 review of drug-related ER visits was issued, it revealed that marijuana sent more people aged 20 and under to the ER than any other drug.
According to this report, 144 young people per 100,000 po
pulation visited an ER in 2010 for help with adverse effects resulting from marijuana abuse. The next highest category was alcohol with 140 young people per 100,000. Prescription pain relievers only sent 36 per 100,000.
Marijuana potency is known to be much, much stronger with modern varieties of cannabis.
Adverse effects from marijuana abuse include panic attacks, paranoia, depression, delusions, hallucinations and depersonalization. Depersonalization is a disorder in which a person loses the sense of their personal identity and reality.
Doctors in ERs are just starting to document cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome among people driven to the ER by marijuana abuse. This syndrome includes severe, agonizing stomach pain, nausea and violent vomiting that cannot be stopped through normal means. Some people find relief from a hot bath or shower, leading some heavy marijuana users to spend hours every day in a bath. When marijuana stops being consumed, the stomach symptoms resolve.
“This report shows us that four times as many young people need emergency medical attention due to adverse effects from marijuana consumption compared to prescription pain relievers,”, stated Clark Carr, president of Narconon International, a network of drug rehabilitation and prevention centers. “Young people increasingly think that marijuana abuse is completely safe because it is sometimes, though rarely prescribed for medical purposes. This misinformation allows these young people to run into problems so severe that they wind up in the hospital.”
The international Narconon network of rehabilitation and prevention centers fights back against this misinformation with drug education classes for youth, adults and corporations. Also, fifty Narconon rehabilitation locations around the world help those who become addicted, like the one-third of a million Americans entering rehab for help with marijuana addiction each year. According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, the majority are aged 25 or less.
“Teachers and parents would be very wise to warn youth that marijuana use is not harmless, that it is accompanied by risk of mental and physical harm as well as addiction”, stressed Mr. Carr. “It is only fair to our young people to give them the complete picture of dangers associated with abuse of this and any drug.”
Resources:
http://wwwdasis.samhsa.gov/webt/quicklink/US10.htm
http://www.samhsa.gov/data/2k12/DAWN096/SR096EDHighlights2010.htm
Warning to Parents About New Drug 2C-1 That is Taking Lives
New party drugs from the phenethyalmine class threaten health and even lives of young people looking for a new experience through drug experimentation.
The latest – and perhaps most dangerous – trend in drugs is the constantly shifting list of synthetics. Many of these will not show up on a drug test because they may be too new, which makes it difficult for medical staff to treat an overdose or bad effect from these drugs. The newest of these to show up in news reports as having caused deaths among teenaged users is 2C-1. But it’s not the only one threatening our youth.
There are several drugs in this class that originated in Europe but have made their way to America. This class of drug is called phenethylamines. A well known drug of this type that is already common to the party or nightclub scene is Ecstasy,
or MDMA.
Effects of this type of drug include hallucinations and changes in emotional states. They are also strong physical stimulants similar to amphetamines so they will increase blood pressure and heart rate and contribute to dehydration. High fevers can result from these effects that may trigger convulsions or organ damage.
These newer phenethylamines making the rounds in America include:
- 2C-I
- 2-C-B
- 2C-T
- 2C-T-2
- 2C-T-7
- Bromo-DragonFLY
- 2C-E
In September 2012, 2C-I wasidentified as the cause of death for two teens in North Dakota. Like other synthetic drugs “bath salts” and K2, the results can be unpredictable and may be dose-related. According to ABC News 4, the drug has been appearing in other major American cities as well since it made its arrival from Europe.
In Europe and the US, there are many deaths and adverse effects attributed to these drugs. In Indiana, as reported by Yahoo! News, 2C-I overdoses have resulted in seizures, kidney failure and fatally high blood pressure. Because they are such strong stimulants, their use may set up a chain reaction that causes organs to shut down, resulting in death.
“Advocates of drug experimentation may praise these drugs for the supposed insight one receives after taking them, but some people are losing their lives,” explained Bobby Wiggins, longtime Narconon spokesperson and drug prevention specialist.
“Those wanting to abuse drugs may like them because are difficult to detect on a drug test. But this may work against them if they wind up in the emergency room and no one can find out what drug they have taken. This is a very real possibility.”
Some results of these drugs reported by the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction
include:
- 2C-T abuse has been associated with vomiting, delirium, loss of memory, panic attacks and strong depression of central nervous system.
- 2C-T-2 abuse has been associated with anxiety, paranoia, panic attacks, muscle rigidity and vomiting.
- 2C-T-7 is associated with vomiting, headaches, confusion, delirium, high blood pressure and muscle spasms. Some individuals have needed hospitalization and one person was in a coma for five days after use.
“These drugs are far too dangerous to experiment with,” continued Mr. Wiggins. “Parents may know how to talk to their children about marijuana and alcohol but not other drugs. We recommend that parents make it very clear to their children that there are no drugs that are completely safe and that young people risk their health, their sanity and their futures if they use these substances.”
For more than forty-five years, Narconon drug rehabilitation centers and drug prevention specialists have been dedicated to bringing about a world without substance abuse or addiction. For information on Narconon drug education programs or rehabilitation services, contact Narconon International at 1-800-775-8750.
Urgent Warning to Parents About Marijuana and IQ Damage
A new report reveals that young people risk lowered intelligence if they start smoking marijuana early in their teens.
Now there’s concrete evidence that young people risk lasting damage if they are frequent abusers of marijuana. A long-term study that followed 1000 New Zealanders from birth through age 38 found that those who started smoking marijuana in their teens lost an average of eight IQ points later in life.
The study was executed by researchers at King’s College London and Duke University in the US. Those being tracked were tested for their IQ at ages 13 and 38, and their marijuana use was noted. The ones who lost the IQ were those who smoked weed at least four days a week for parts of these early years. Those who never smoked marijuana until after they turned 20 were not affected by this loss.
What makes this result even more serious is that if the marijuana smokers stopped smoking the drug well before the second IQ test, their intelligence score did not recover.
“Many parents may instinctively feel that it is wrong for their children to use drugs or drink but may not know how to explain the dangers,” said Bobby Wiggins, longtime Drug Prevention Specialist for Narconon International. Narconon is a non-profit organization dedicated to the elimination of substance abuse and addiction. “This gives them a definite result they can talk about.”
The report notes that a lower IQ score is a strong determinant of a person’s access to higher education, lifetime income, good job opportunities and the development of certain illnesses like Alzheimer’s disease or heart disease.
Mr. Wiggins encouraged parents to use this study to explain to children that marijuana or other drug abuse can have lasting adverse effects. “In my thirty years of drug education experience, I have found that many parents don’t really know how to approach the subject of substance abuse with their kids,” he observed. “It is far better to make it clear that you are opposed to substance abuse of any kind and provide the best evidence you can of the danger than to be silent. It does make a difference.”
Narconon has created educational videos featuring Bobby Wiggins that help parents understand more about this drug so they have a greater understanding when talking to their children. These videos are available at YouTube: www.narconon.org/drug-education/videos/.
Basic marijuana information is available on the Narconon International website at: www.narconon.org/drug-information/marijuana-pot.html
“My goal is that all our youth grow up drug-free and successful.” Mr. Wiggins concluded. “My wish is that parents use this information to protect their own children and others in their communities.”
Narconon Reaches Out to Sports Teams with Addiction Recovery Advice
With several major league sports teams suffering recent arrests for drinking or drugs, Narconon offers advice on how addiction starts and how it can be overcome.
When basketball star Jason Kidd crashed his car in the Hamptons and was arrested for drunk driving, this was a latest episode in a long list of summertime incarcerations for public drunkenness by sports figures, some involving accidents and injuries.
Jason Kidd had just been signed by the Knicks a couple of days before and then on July 14th, went clubbing with friends. Some reports state that his friends tried to convince him not to drive after he left the club drunk but he took off anyway, later crashing into a telephone pole.(1)
Jason joins a long roster of other athletes who have been arrested since May, starting with UFC champion Jon “Bones” Jones, who crashed his Bentley into a pole in Birmingham, New York on May 19, according to Yahoo! News. (2) ESPN reported that Nick Fairley, defensive tackle for the Lions, was arrested for the second time in two months for a DUI charge. The first arrest was for marijuana possession. (3)
USA Today noted that Jerome Fulton of the Vikings was arrested on June 2nd in the drive-through of a McDonalds in Minnesota. (4) Then there was New York Giants lineman David Diehl also on June 2nd, Justin Blackmon from the Jaguars on June 3, Aaron Berry from the Lions on June 23, (5) and Eric Wright of the Buccaneers who was involved in a collision with injuries on July 2nd.
Why Drugs or Alcohol Become so Valuable
”When a person tries a drug or alcohol and find that it solves a problem or relieves some difficulty, that substance is assigned a certain value,” explained Bobby Wiggins, longtime spokesperson and drug educator for Narconon International. “If a person has a hard time handling the stresses of these high-pressure jobs, or if the pressures are causing problems in his marriage, he may find that alcohol or drugs make those problems seem to disappear. That person is likely to repeat the drug or alcohol abuse with the final result potentially being addiction to that substance.” This is the premise of the Narconon drug and alcohol rehabilitation program. Using this premise, the Narconon treatment facilities around the world are able to achieve a 70% success rate.
“Since we go right to the cause of the problem and do our repairs there, we can average this high success rate” Mr. Wiggins continued. “By giving players assistance dealing with the challenges that are right there in front of them instead of hiding them behind substance abuse, these teams can help their players learn how to enjoy life without intoxication.”
For more information on Narconon, call 1-800-775-8750.
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References:
- 1 http://aol.sportingnews.com/nba/story/2012-07-15/jason-kidd-arrested-dui-dwi-jeremy-lin-contract-ny-knicks-houston-rockets
- 2 http://sports.yahoo.com/news/jon-jones-arrested-york-crashing-bentley-fan-reaction–190800743–mma.html
- 3 http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/7977231/nick-fairley-detroit-lions-arrested-dui-charge-attempting-elude-police
- 4 http://content.usatoday.com/communities/thehuddle/post/2012/06/vikings-fb-jerome-felton-gets-dwi-in-mcdonalds-drive-thru/1
- 5 http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2012/06/26/lions-aaron-berry-arrested-for-dui/
US Emergency Room Visits Due to Prescription Drug Poisonings Reach Epidemic Levels
According to a study, prescription drug poisonings kill more people than traffic accidents in many states, leading a drug rehabilitation expert from Narconon to encourage more drug prevention and education.
The study released in March 2011 reports on the hundreds of thousands of people each year who experience such serious problems with substance abuse that they must take themselves to the emergency department (ED) of their closest hospitals. The study also reported on the decade-long rise in these statistics.
The new study was issued by researchers and the Center for Injury Research and Policy at The Research Institute at Nationwide Children’s Hospital. The records were collected from emergency rooms in every corner of the US in 2007. According to this study, 2007 saw nearly 700,000 ED visits related to drug poisonings just in the hospitals included in this report, resulting in costs of nearly $1.4 billion. This means that every day, at least 1,900 people walk into an Emergency Department with either illicit drug or prescription drug poisoning.
Prescription drugs were involved in hundreds of thousands of these emergency visits. Antidepressants and tranquilizers were involved in nearly a quarter, and pain and fever control medications were associated with 23 percent of them.
This study also turned up a startling realization: The rate of visits for drug-related poisonings is three times as high in rural areas as it is in urban or suburban areas.
Showing up in growing numbers were visits related to misuse of methadone, oxycodone and hydrocodone, dispensed in ever-increasing numbers and moving briskly on illicit markets as well.
But Study Omits Millions of ED Visits from its Scope
“As tragic and alarming as this report is, this is only part of the story,” stated Wiggins, the Director of Narconon Drug Education. “This particular study only encompasses the emergency department reports of 27 states. A more accurate look at the problem can be obtained by reviewing the reports from the Drug Awareness Warning Network which includes more visits in its scope.” Narconon is an international non-profit organization dedicated to the elimination of substance abuse and addiction through effective drug rehabilitation and drug education.
The Center for Injury Research and Policy study encompassed 27 million ED visits. The Drug Awareness Warning Network (DAWN) includes 116 million ED visits from 2007. Of these, DAWN reports that 1.9 million were associated with drug misuse or abuse.
Some visits involved pharmaceutical drug poisoning alone and other visits involved a mixture of pharmaceuticals and alcohol or illicit drugs.
 31 percent of the visits involved abuse of pharmaceutical drugs by themselves
 10 percent mixed alcohol with the pharmaceutical drugs
 8 percent mixed illicit drugs and pharmaceuticals
 4 percent mixed all three categories |
As in the Center for Injury Research and Policy report, the DAWN report also found that the most frequently involved opioids were methadone, oxycodone and hydrocodone. Anti-anxiety medications occurred in almost a third of these visits, with alprazolam (marketed as Xanax) being the most common benzodiazepine found present. More than 80,000 people who used this drug in 2007 needed to visit the emergency room.
“Of course, some of the blame for this problem can be assigned to practitioners who dispense their drugs too indiscriminately,” added Bobby Wiggns. “But there is another situation contributing to this problem that has nothing to do with the practitioners. And that is the fact that too few people are well-educated on the deadly problems that can be associated with drug abuse, misuse of prescription drugs, and mixing illicit drugs, alcohol and prescription drugs.”
Narconon Centers Around the World Offer Classes Aimed at Preventing Just these Kinds of Statistics
“Narconon centers around the world help people learn to live clean and sober lives after addiction, but that’s not enough,” Wiggins explained. “Completely wiping out the addiction problem will take place on many fronts. You must have no household with addictive medications lying around that could be abused, you must have every young person educated on the dangers of abusing prescription drugs and the adults in the household must be explicit and clear about a zero-tolerance policy that is checked up on and enforced. And that’s just for starters.”
Bobby also described the Narconon drug rehabilitation program and the eight-part drug education curriculum. “Both the Narconon rehabilitation steps and the educational curriculum are based on more than 40 years of helping recovering addicts get their lives back. In the Narconon drug education classes we offer, students are taught that drugs are fat-soluble and so tend to stick in the fatty tissues of the body.”
But there is a solution to these lodged drugs. The Narconon drug rehabilitation program has a sauna and exercise portion of the drug recovery program called the Narconon New Life Detoxification program. This phase flushes out the lodged drug residues. Wiggins added, “Many recovering addicts say that this step helps them overcome the cravings that can make recovery so difficult.”
The Narconon drug education curriculum covers every aspect of drugs, from the media attempts to covertly coerce young people into being attracted to drugs, to the effects drugs can have long after a person stops using them.
The Narconon drug education curriculum was itself the subject of a peer-reviewed study. In trials in Oklahoma and Hawai’i, groups of students were surveyed in detail about their attitudes on substance abuse and incidence of drug use. The students then received the entire eight-part curriculum and their attitudes after six months were compared to another group that had not yet received the education. In every category of drugs, use in the educated group dropped and attitudes about substance abuse had grown healthier.
“Since it has been proven that education can reduce substance abuse, we must provide effective drug education appropriate to grade level to our school children,” Wiggins summed up. “With education at the front end and effective rehab for those who have fallen into addiction, we can anticipate a future that is free from these hundreds of thousands of emergency room visits due to drug poisonings.”
Related Articles:
Substance Abuse Growing Problem For Older Adults
Real Extent of Teen Marijuana Abuse
Resources:
https://dawninfo.samhsa.gov/files/ED2007/DAWN2k7ED.htm
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/08/health/research/08hazards.html?_r=2
http://www.sciencedirect.com/ ED visits for drug-related poisoning in the United States, 2007
Substance Abuse Now a Growing Problem For Older Adults Around the World
If you examine the trends of illicit drug abuse in the US, it’s usual to find that the peaks show up in young adulthood and then gradually drop off as the population ages. In the last several years, however, statistics show that more and more older adults are abusing illicit drugs or prescription drugs. Since detection of illicit drug use and rehabilitation efforts are generally more geared around younger citizens, the older drug-abusing population can be overlooked.
Health services in Europe are facing the same substance abuse problems as their population ages. In the twentieth century, the number of Europeans 65 and older tripled. It’s estimated that by 2028, more than 25% of Europe’s population will be 65 or older.
A significant factor in the use of illicit drugs or abuse of prescription drugs among this age group is that this is the generation that saw large increases in substance abuse in the late 1960s and early 1970s. As this generation ages, they may lack the compunctions of earlier generations toward drug abuse.
Comparison of Recent Reports Shows the Increases
A recent report from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) shows that 4.8 million older Americans (or 5.2 percent of those 50 and above) abused an illicit or prescription drug. This number was derived by combining statistics from 2007 to 2009. This breaks down further to 6.9% of men over 50 and 3.8% of women.
Perhaps the best understanding of how this problem is increasing is to examine the increase in the percentage of older adults abusing drugs. To look at this statistic, one just needs to compare the recent SAMSHA report with an earlier one that uses 2002-2003 statistics.
2007-2009: 6.9 % of older American men abused drugs; 3.8% of women
2002-2003: 2.3% of older American men abused drugs; 1.4% of women
Thus this drug abuse statistic is well on its way to tripling in just a few years.
Another report from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health estimated that when you add in alcohol abuse, the percentage of older Americans struggling with substance abuse increases to 17%. Older citizens are challenged with some unique problems and some common to many age groups, such as isolation, loss of friends and family members, reduction in professional or social status, loneliness and boredom.
Adding to the danger is that older adults may not be able to process drugs and alcohol as quickly as a younger person. They may build up an overdose of a drug through repeated doses that are too close together, even though at a younger age, they could have tolerated those dosages.
Older Family Members Need the Same Solution as Young
Drug or alcohol abuse by an older adult may be a little more subtle than abuse by a younger person. They may not be losing jobs, fencing stolen goods and getting arrested, like a younger person might be. Family members may need to monitor alcohol supplies and pill counts to detect abuse, and consider substance abuse if mental or physical conditions deteriorate.
But there’s no age limit on improving quality of life. At Narconon drug and alcohol rehabilitation services, older adults who found themselves addicted to alcohol, prescription drugs, marijuana or other substances have come to find recovery. Sometimes the problem was long-standing and sometimes it was of recent origin. The Narconon program provides sobriety no matter how the problem arose.
In this long-term residential drug rehab program, a thorough detoxification program enables each person to flush out the drug toxins that remain after substance abuse, lodged in fatty tissues, and that have been found to contribute to foggy, slow thinking. This service routinely helps reduce cravings and generally brightens one’s outlook.
After that, the life skills component enables each person to learn how to improve his (or her) condition in life and make all-important drug-free decisions in the future.
The result is that seven out of ten graduates go on to live lives free from substance abuse. It does not matter how old or young the addicted person is, Narconon can help provide a drug-free future. To find out how the Narconon drug rehab program can help your family, call today: 1-800-775-8750.
More Articles:
Painkiller Addiction Hits Nurseries
Extent of Teen Marijuana Abuse
Resources:
http://www.emcdda.europa.eu/attachements.cfm/att_50566_EN_TDAD08001ENC_web.pdf
http://www.maclearinghouse.com/PDFs/SubstanceAbuse/SA1016.pdf
http://oas.samhsa.gov/2k5/olderadults/olderadults.pdf
http://oas.samhsa.gov/2k11/013/WEB_SR_013_HTML.pdf
http://www.oas.samhsa.gov/2k9/168/168OlderAdultsHTML.pdf
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