introduction

According to a recent Gallup poll, the use and temptation of drugs is the leading problem that American teenagers and young adults face. One in twelve Americans over the age of 12 admits that they currently use illicit drugs. According to the Partnership for a Drug-Free America, one in five teenagers admits to using prescription drugs to get high, and one in ten teenagers admits to using over the counter (OTC) cough and cold medicines to get high. Nearly two-thirds of teens report that prescription pain relievers are easy to find at home, in the medicine cabinet. Healthy People 2010 shows that 30% of all deaths in the United States are premature because of psychoactive substances. The leading causes of death in Americans between the ages of 15 and 24 are accidents, suicides, and homicides…in many cases directly because of drug use. Almost all drug use begins in the teenage years where conflict, pressure, temptation, curiosity, and drug availability are all increasingly present. However, regardless of age, class, gender, or religion, all groups are susceptible to fall victim to the appeal and effects of psychoactive drugs.
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how does prescription drug addiction occur?

Narcotics, or painkillers, are drugs commonly prescribed to patients to alleviate intense pain and suffering. Morphine, an opiate, is one of the most commonly prescribed narcotics. However, opium is also present in the street drug heroin and creates hallucinogenic changes in mood and feeling. Natural pain remedies such as the coca leaf has a modern derivative in the street drug cocaine, which has become increasingly abused in the past 20 years. Cocaine acts as a central nervous system stimulant (creating “highs” because of nervous system overactivity) and as an appetite suppressant. It becomes easier to understand the addictive effects of prescription drugs when their relationship to illicit drugs is explained. Patients who take prescription drugs for pain and post-operative management sometimes find themselves addicted to the pleasant effects of the drug (mood change, increased sensation, alleviation of depression) and continue administration of the drug long after the intended result of the drug is achieved.
(Sanberg, Paul, Ph.D. and Michael Bunsey. "Prescription Narcotics: The Addictive Painkillers." Chelsea House Publishers: 1986.)

The goals of this blog are to:
.educate readers about the growing epidemic of prescription drug abuse
.explain the appeal, availability, and dangers of abuse, specifically among teens, and discuss treatment
.supply parents with prescription and OTC drug abuse warning signs and stress the importance of communicating with teens
.provide a variety of sources and information so readers can further their knowledge of this increasingly-present and often-overlooked form of substance abuse

Thursday, March 19, 2009

pharming parties

This article explains the growing trend of "pharming parties," where teens get together, exchange prescription medications, and get high. Columbia University's National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) announced in 2005 that the rate of abuse of illegal drugs such as cocaine, heroin, and marijuana among teens is on the decline, while the abuse of prescription drugs is on the rise. These teen addicts find any excuse to use prescription medicines and usually do not recognize their addiction until it is too late. Parents maintain a blind eye to the problem, most often because they do not recognize the signs and symptoms of addiction or because they are in denial--even when prescription medicines are disappearing from their own medicine cabinets. Teens also find it increasingly easier to order prescription medicines from online pharmacies or by faking symptoms for a physician and obtaining a written prescription. It is important for parents and healthcare providers to understand the dangers of prescription drug abuse, because, according to Dr. Francis Hayden of New York Mount Sinai's adolescent mental-health center, "when adults and medical professionals treat medications casually, we need not be surprised that adolescents are treating them casually."


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3 comments:

  1. AnonymousMarch 20, 2009 at 11:36 AM

    A really sad state of affairs. If only kids realized they are not invincible. Lie is so fragile and to throw it away is beyond sad.

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  2. AnonymousMarch 22, 2009 at 8:15 AM

    I can't believe this is really occurring! It's just insane that teens are doing this and parents are oblivious. We definitely need stricter guidelines for obtaining a prescription and more parental involvement in the affairs of teens.

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  3. AnonymousMarch 24, 2009 at 3:49 PM

    I also never knew pharming parties existed. However, after reading your blog, I am not surprised. Upon further research, I found that students are also bringing prescription meds to school and exchanging them there.

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