More long term studies are being published on the effects of opioids in the United States. As researchers are able to obtain a broader scope of the damage, the data is revealing more about what could help combat the opioid crisis. For instance, a new report shows that women are…
Now that marijuana possession has been decriminalized in a number of US states, there are fewer instances where people are being sent to marijuana treatment programs by the legal system. Even though the number of instances of court-ordered treatment is dropping, survey results are showing that numbers are up for…
The results of a new study have found that teens who come from an upper-middle class background are at higher risk for drug or alcohol addiction than the national average. The researchers found that in their mid-twenties, young adults from a well-to-do background were two-to-three times more likely to be…
At the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine’s annual meeting in Orlando, Florida, researchers presented a new study that warns against prescribing opioids for minor pain. The room full of doctors and medical professionals listened to Kit Delgado, an assistant professor of Emergency Medicine and Epidemiology at the University of Pennsylvania,…
One of the most common reasons to prescribe prescription painkillers is after a surgical procedure. Sometimes these surgeries can be major, and other times they can be less invasive. However, painkillers have become part of most standard recovery protocols. One major problem with this is that sometimes patients do not…
There can be many different signs and symptoms to watch out for to find out if your loved one has a substance abuse problem. Do they seem more withdrawn? Did they used to have money and now they seem to always be coming up short? Are they associating with new…
In an ongoing effort to learn more about addiction and to protect veterans, a research team from the University of Michigan and Department of Veterans Affairs has conducted a study to determine what sort of indicators can increase the likelihood of suicides among veterans. Their ultimate goal is to help…
In an effort to deal with the issue of increased heroin and opioid overdoses in the state, a groundswell of support seems to be growing for a measure that would make it legal to force people with substance abuse issues into treatment in the state of Pennsylvania. The highest-ranking Democrat…
One of the more serious, yet under-acknowledged, side effects of cocaine use is the risky behavior that can arise after using the drug. Risky behavior can include actions such as violence, theft or other crime, and poor decision making regarding sexual encounters. In fact, risky sex-related behavior is exactly what…
Let’s face it. The Affordable Care Act (ACA) as we know it will be going away. As with other political arguments, this inevitability is met with scorn by some people and is praised by others. Right now, the only thing that is certain is that there is a lot of…
The results of a new study have identified how drug abuse and addiction can increase the rate of aging, as well as age-related illnesses. These include inflammation, cellular aging and decline in brain volume and function. The list of age-related ailments also includes early onset of brain, liver, kidney and…
Most people understand that the physical signs of drug abuse are apparent in an intravenous drug user’s skin. There are other signs of addiction that are apparent to a dermatologist who examines their patients’ skin. These trained medical professionals can determine when a patient may be having a problem with…
