The Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), R. Gil Kerlikowske, stated in an interview recently that when it comes to marijuana, “We are certainly not sending a very good message when we call it medicine and legalize it.” The federal government and many states are currently at odds because they have [...]
Continue ReadingIt is not just military personnel who bear the brunt of the stress and anxiety related to war, but the family members who are left behind as well. Although the stressors may be different for spouses, parents, children, and siblings stateside who have a loved one fighting abroad, the fears and anxiety are very real. [...]
Continue ReadingResearchers have known for decades that a number of factors appear to influence teen drug and alcohol abuse. However, there are two factors that seem to be emerging as key to the development of underage drinking and drug use: Personality traits Peer pressure With this knowledge, psychologists wanted to find out if helping teens understand [...]
Continue ReadingMuch media attention has been given to the fact that more and more competitive high school students have been using ADHD medications with stimulant actions in order to study longer into the night and focus better during tests. In support of this information is recent research from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration [...]
Continue ReadingDespite the fact that prescription painkiller addiction is the fastest-growing substance abuse problem in the US and now kills more people each year than motor vehicle accidents, it appears that the misuse of these medications is not of great concern among parents. The University of Michigan conducted a survey of 1,300 parents with teenagers ranging [...]
Continue ReadingWe have known for a long time that peer pressure is a major factor in whether or not teens start drinking and doing drugs during their middle school and high school years. Parents who are vigilant often identify certain friends as a potential “bad influence,” as a result. It has never been clear if this [...]
Continue ReadingA new study from the federal government’s Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) showed that emergency room visits due to energy drinks doubled from roughly 10,000 in 2007 to 20,000 in 2011. These drinks, often loaded with caffeine, can cause any number of side effects severe enough to warrant emergency medical treatment including: [...]
Continue ReadingA survey given by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) shows that a third of 10th graders admit to drinking alcohol in the last month, and their doctors may be missing a massive opportunity to counsel them on this major problem. Healthcare providers are expected to make alcohol screening a routine part [...]
Continue ReadingBack in the 1960s and 1970s, many states had a legal drinking age as low as 18 years of age. Slowly, over time, all states raised the minimum age to 21 years old, but the problem of underage drinking and excessive alcohol consumption in high school and college still remains a problem. Some people question [...]
Continue ReadingResearch from the University of Sydney’s Brain and Mind Research Institute found that nearly half of all adults with a mental health problem also struggle with a substance abuse issue. So it may not come as a surprise that teens and young adults with a mental illness have elevated rates of alcohol and drug abuse [...]
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