According to recent reports from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), overprescribing and abuse of prescription drugs have been climbing. Following right behind those statistics are addiction and overdose death statistics. While a decade or so ago, the main drugs killing people through overdoses were drugs like heroin and cocaine, these days far more people are being killed by prescription drugs – drugs that were intended to make life bearable for people with chronic pain or other serious conditions.

http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6043a4.htm?s_cid=mm6043a4_w

Mirroring this shift is the pattern of admissions to addiction treatment at Narconon drug recovery centers across the country. In the thirteen rehabs in the US that use the standardized Narconon addiction treatment protocol, the common pattern is an increase in the number of prescription drug addicts, as many as half of all admissions at some centers.

“The number of people needing to recover from prescription drug addiction – especially painkillers – has reached epidemic levels,” warned Bobby Wiggins, drug education specialist for the international headquarters of Narconon, located in Los Angeles. “More young people are abusing these drugs as well, so much so that abuse of prescription drugs threatens to overtake the use of marijuana by teens.” Mr. Wiggins cited the National Survey on Drug Use and Health by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), which reported in that in 2009, nearly a million 14 and 15 year olds had abused a prescription drug at some point in their young lives. This is nearly eleven percent of all children of this age.

http://oas.samhsa.gov/NSDUH/2k10NSDUH/tabs/Sect1peTabs1to46.htm#Tab1.1A

“Young people see their parents using these medications and then may see the drugs being abused in television shows and movies. Young people who feel they are stressed or anxious or are just curious or bored may take a few pills for their own use,” Mr. Wiggins explained. “But as the young people get older and have more means and freedom, this occasional use can become abuse and addiction very easily.”

The CDC report reviewed the number of drug overdose deaths in the US between 1999 and 2008 that were related to prescription drugs and then noted that opiate pain reliever use contributed to the largest number of drug deaths. Out of 36,450 drug overdose deaths in 2008, a specific drug or drugs were named in 27,153 deaths. Opiate pain relievers were responsible for nearly 74% of these deaths. Non-Hispanic whites and American Indian/Alaska Natives were the hardest hit, with three times the deaths of Hispanic whites or African Americans.

http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6043a4.htm?s_cid=mm6043a4_w

According to SAMHSA, there were 142,000 people admitted to addiction treatment facilities for problems with pain reliever addiction in 2009. But of all those who need treatment for addiction, fewer than 10% actually get treatment. Of those who did not receive treatment, only about one in twenty felt that they needed help with addiction. The remainder did not see the problem even though they fit the criteria for dependence or addiction. This means that there are probably around a million and a half Americans struggling with addiction to OxyContin, Roxicodone, hydrocodone (sold as Lortab, Lorcet or Vicodin), morphine, methadone, or the many other drugs on this list.

http://oas.samhsa.gov/nsduh/2k8nsduh/2k8Results.cfm#7.3

“The solution to this problem is multi-faceted,” reported Mr. Wiggins. “The CDC encourages the states to implement greater controls over opiate prescribing. The public must be better educated on the dangers of prescription drug abuse and there must be effective drug rehabilitation available.”

SAMSHA data gathering also found that in 2008, nearly four times as many of those people entering treatment for the second, third or more times reported pain reliever abuse as repeat admissions did in 1999. This follows the trend of broader prescribing and abuse followed by higher numbers of those addicted.

http://www.oas.samhsa.gov/2k10/230/230PainRelvr2k10.htm

Mr. Wiggins concluded, “The cycle of addiction is broken when treatment eliminates the key factors that have been discovered at Narconon: guilt, cravings and depression.” At Narconon rehab centers around the world, seven out of ten graduates remain drug-free after they go home, whether they are getting help for alcohol, heroin, cocaine or prescription pain relievers.

A recent report from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration lays out the figures. In 2004, about a million people visited the ER for problems with illicit drugs. In 2009, about a million illicit drug abusers also went to the ER with problems. But in that short time, the number of people misusing or abusing prescription drugs and then needing emergency medical care has nearly doubled – from 627,000 to 1.24 million people.

Some drugs had a jump of more than 100 percent during this time period. Oxycodone (primarily sold as OxyContin) was involved in 242 percent more ER visits at the end of this five-year period and visits related to hydrocodone (found in Vicodin and Lortab) abuse were up 125 percent. Alprazolam, an anti-anxiety medication that is often abused, was involved in visits increasing 148 percent.

“People often start abusing prescription drugs because they have the mistaken impression that they are safer than illicit drugs like heroin, cocaine or methamphetamine,” reported Bobby Wiggins, a spokesperson and educator for Narconon. Narconon is an international non-profit dedicated to the elimination of substance abuse and addiction through effective drug rehabilitation and education. “For some people, synthetic opiates like oxycodone and hydrocodone are just as addictive as heroin or cocaine. And they can and do result in overdoses and bad reactions, sometimes due to mixing these drugs with others or alcohol.”

Among young people, marijuana was the illicit drug that most often sent them to the emergency room. In 2009, for every 100,000 people 20 and younger, 125 of them went to an emergency room with a problem related to weed consumption. In those over 20, the most problematic drug was cocaine.

“If more people realized the dangers that awaited them when they start abusing illicit or prescription drugs, more people would make the right decision and steer clear,” added Wiggins. “That is why we do extensive drug education and provide rehabilitation services in drug treatment centers around the world. Our goal is a world free from substance abuse and addiction.” More than 100 Narconon centers around the world help addicts find lasting recovery.

www.narconon-news.org

The abuse of illicit drugs or prescription drugs can be a cause of disaster not only for the person who becomes addicted but also for family members and friends. Narconon is an international organization dedicated to eliminating drug abuse and addiction and preventing substance abuse through education. Family members may find themselves bankrupt due to their extensive efforts to save the addict’s life and children are helpless in the face of drug-related neglect, abuse or accidental poisoning.

A brief examination of news sources reveals that this type of tragedy is repeated all too often across the U.S. In Pennsylvania in 2009, an accidental dose of methadone took the life of a 23-month old child. The police responding to the call found drugs and drug paraphernalia in the home.

And in Palm Beach County, a 21-month old child died after finding cocaine and the pain killer OxyContin during the night and eating it. The baby was dead when the mother tried to wake him up in the morning. His little body held enough drugs to kill an adult. The mother’s boyfriend, in the home the night the baby died, had previously been arrested for possession of drugs.

The fact of addiction means that even a well-meaning person is unable to stop abusing the addictive substance despite harm and despite the danger to the family. That’s when those around the addict need to intervene and find an effective rehabilitation service. Getting the addict to rehab may save the life of more people than just the addict himself or herself.

The Narconon drug and alcohol rehabilitation center is a safe refuge for those addicts who know the time has come to eliminate drug or alcohol abuse from their lives. This long-term residential program, delivered in centers across the U.S. and around the world, has proven to enable seven out of ten graduates to live sober, drug-free lives after graduation.

For more information about the Narconon drug treatment program, visit www.narconon.org

Cocaine is a stimulant drug that creates stress on the mother’s heart, brain, lungs and other organs. Cocaine speeds up the heart and increases blood pressure while it constricts the arteries that provide the heart with blood. Mothers-to-be risk heart attack, seizures and strokes, even when young.

When a pregnant woman takes cocaine, the drug goes right through the placenta into the baby’s body. It also clears from a baby’s body more slowly than it does the mom’s, meaning that there is a greater chance for damage to be done.

“What is ironic is that teenaged pregnant women have rates of drug abuse nearly twice the rate of young women who were not pregnant,” stated Bobby Wiggins Spokesperson of  the Narconon drug rehabilitation program. Narconon is an international organization dedicated to helping young people avoid substance abuse and rehabilitating those who have become addicted. “And women who are addicted to cocaine may not be able to quit even if they know the risk to themselves and their babies. That’s the nature of addiction. Each year, a third of a million babies are born who show signs of being affected by illicit drug use.”

Cocaine-abusing women put their babies at risk for birth defects like abnormalities of the brain, skull, intestines, genitals and urinary tracts. Some affected babies may be born with symptoms of stroke or suffer deformed arms or legs.

If a newborn cocaine-exposed baby manages to escape birth defects, he or she may still go through a period of drug withdrawal marked by poor sleep, trembling, irritability and an increased risk of sudden death. They may feed poorly and suffer from vomiting or diarrhea.

“No baby should be forced to experience these terrible symptoms,” added Bobby. “Proper care for a pregnant woman including effective drug rehabilitation treatment can reduce the chance of cocaine-related birth defects. What is even better is for a women of child-bearing years to enter a drug recovery program before she becomes pregnant.”

The Narconon drug and alcohol rehabilitation program provides women with a chance for lasting sobriety that can save their lives and the lives of their future babies. In Narconon centers around the world, seven out of ten graduates, both men and women, go home to lead sober, productive live.

For more information on Narconon visit www.narconon.org

“Meth Home” registries fail to protect people from contaminated homes previously used for methamphetamine manufacture.

Across the nation increasing manufacture and use of methamphetamine means that the lovely home you just bought for your growing family could be your worst nightmare. As has happened hundreds of times in every state in the nation families or individuals move into homes where methamphetamine was manufactured by a former owner or renter. Due to high levels of contamination parents may come down with kidney problems or migraines children may begin to suffer from serious asthma attacks and what is termed “failure to thrive” in infants.

The problem has become so pervasive that the Drug Enforcement Agency established a national registry for “meth houses” at http://www.justice.gov/dea/seizures/index.html.

When we talk about problems with drug abuse and addiction, we usually focus on the addicts and crime associated with the selling and taking of drugs. This is a whole other part of the drug abuse problem in America that is not often discussed. Narconon is an international organization that is dedicated to preventing drugs abuse and addiction and rehabilitation of those who have become addicted.

Missouri has been particularly hard hit by meth seizures. Year after year they have some of the highest lab bust statistics of any state. They passed a law stating that an owner who knew of meth lab activity in the house had to reveal this fact to prospective owners. But professional contractors in the state estimate that as many as 90 percent of meth houses are never detected and thus are never reported.

Missouri state authorities list 1284 meth busts in 2006 1285 in 2007 1487 in 2008 1774 in 2009 and 1242 through August of 2010. But the DEA registry lists just 2756 meth houses. Since reporting is voluntary the Registry is better than nothing but does not serve the purpose of keeping people safe.

One of the best ways to know if the lovely home you wish to purchase formerly housed meth manufacture is to start with the neighbors. Before you buy ask the residents on both sides and across the street if there was any police activity at the house. Ask about strong foul odors or blacked out windows or strange items in the trash. Any of these indicators can point to methamphetamine manufacture. The Department of Health of many states will provide guidelines on cleaning up meth-contaminated homes. Some companies that do mold remediation are also qualified to de-contaminate meth houses.

Essential in the effort to combat methamphetamine abuse and thus reduce demand for the drug are effective drug education for youth and drug rehabilitation treatment for those who fall to this quickly addictive and physically damaging drug.

Narconon organizations around the world provide drug education to young people to help them understand the problems that result from abusing drugs. It has proven effective in reducing the drug use among young people who have received the curriculum. And the Narconon drug treatment program enables seven out of ten graduates to remain drug free after they return home. And that includes those recovering from methamphetamine addiction.

For more information on Narconon visit www.narconon.org

In 2004, the Bureau found that more than one in five criminals in jail said they had committed the crime they were convicted of to get money for drugs. Property crimes ran higher, from 25 to 30 percent. Each year, between 4 and 7 percent of homicides, or close to 600, are related to drug use. And in 2007, a survey of victims of violence felt that their attacker had been on drugs or alcohol in about a quarter of the attacks.

In states where methaphetamine use is rampant, child abuse and domestic violence also tends to be high. Montana authorities reported that drug use was a factor in 66 percent of all foster care placements, and in the vast majority of cases, the drug involved was methamphetamine. In Pinellas County, Florida, a sheriff’s deputy estimated that his workload would drop 60 percent if there were no drugs or alcohol being abused.

We don’t have to get into an argument about whether or not drugs or alcohol abuse cause crime. Narconon is an international organization that is dedicated to preventing drugs abuse and addiction and rehabilitation those who have become addicted. The truth is that if drug addiction and alcohol abuse were eliminated from the scene, crime figures would drop.

Drug-related crimes are classified in three categories:
Use-related crimes that result from drug-impaired individuals committing crimes because of the effects that the drugs (or alcohol) have on their behavior and judgment. For example, the hit and run driver or the hopped-up person who attacks another with a knife because he imagines some danger.
Economic-related crimes or crimes to get the money for a drug habit, including theft and prostitution.
System-related crime which are crimes resulting from the manufacture, distribution and sales of drugs and the violence associated with these acts.

Drug abuse and long-term or heavy alcohol use have such a damaging effect on a person’s personality and judgment. Many people find themselves committing crimes or immoral actions in the course of their addiction that they never would have committed before. That’s why the Narconon program includes a number of actions that help a recovering addict recover his or her self-esteem and senses of morals, personal values and integrity.

On the Narconon drug and alcohol rehabilitation program, each recovering addict learns to face the damage he or she has done to their relationships, careers and communities. As the addiction is replaced by a productive life, many of those who have recovered look for and find ways to give back to those who were damaged by the years of addiction.

Narconon centers around the world also offer drug education classes to students and young adults to help keep them from needing drug recovery programs in the future.

The prevention and treatment of addiction are an essential part of lowering crime and creating a world that is safer for all of us.

For more information on the Narconon drug and alcohol rehabilitation program or their drug education curriculum, visit www.narconon.org

That’s enough marijuana to roll more than 190 million joints, worth somewhere in the neighborhood of $400 million. The marijuana was burned in a public ceremony three days later.

Marijuana is still a very big business. A good, money-making business for the likes of the three cartels operating in the northern Baja California peninsula, said to have recently formed an alliance instead of fighting over turf.

“This huge quantity of drugs headed into our country makes it all too obvious that the problem must be fought from both the supply side and the demand side,” stated Clark Carr, president Narconon International. “The government can fight supply all it wants, but those in this country who are addicted to drugs will find a way to get their next fix of heroin, cocaine or marijuana. And yes, based on the number of people who come to Narconon to overcome a marijuana addiction, marijuana is addictive.”

Across the nation, millions of people live productive, sober lifestyles until they come in contact with the drug pusher that works at the desk next to them, who just moved into their neighborhood, or who is in their class at school. Those small, supposedly inconsequential “deals” amount eventually to sums of money that are subverting whole countries. Thoughtless of the lives being ruined, the cartels and their representatives on the street rake in their profits and condemn millions to the loss and pain of addiction and even death due to overdoses.

In Narconon drug and alcohol rehabilitation centers across the country, those addicted to alcohol, methamphetamine, prescription or other drugs use the eight-step Narconon drug treatment program to claim their lives back from the cartels. With seven out of ten Narconon program graduates remaining clean and sober and with more than 30,000 graduates from the 140 Narconon drug treatment or education centers around the world, that’s a lot of people who are no longer customers of the cartels.

“Every person deserves a chance to grow up and live drug-free,” added Mr. Carr. “But the cartels do their best to take this chance away. We help give life back to people every day, in every Narconon drug and alcohol rehabilitation center.”

For more information on Narconon drug recovery centers around the world, visit www.narconon-news.org.

After the war, the factory where methadone was invented fell under American control, which led to the first clinical trials of Methadone in 1947. The American pharmaceutical company, Eli-Lilly, first coined the name Dolophine – which comes from a combination of the Latin word dolor (pain) and the French word fin (end).

Eli Lilly was unsuccessful in marketing Dolophine (methadone) as a low cost analgesic and by the early 1950s, the drug was hardly being used at all. In 1968, New York City doctors, at Rockefeller University, Marie Nyswander and Vincent Dole, were experimenting with different drugs to help heroin users and discovered methadone could be used as a substitute for any other opiate, including heroin.

During the Nixon presidency, Vietnam veterans were returning home to America with heroin addictions that were costing them $5-a-day in Southeast Asia, but required $100 or more to maintain in the US. In a speech in 1971, Nixon called drug addiction “public enemy number one” and supported an expansion of methadone as a detox medication and as a replacement maintenance for those opiate addicts that had relapse histories.

From that time to present, methadone maintenance clinics have become very profitable business enterprises, since the cost of methadone is about ten cents/dose and those that are on daily doses of methadone cannot easily stop taking this drug, since methadone is known to produce the highest level of symptoms of opiate withdrawal.

Profits from the methadone dispensing business are also assured by the government, both state and federal, limiting competition by only allowing a certain number of clinics within a given area and since their patients must have the drug daily, the clinics can basically charge whatever the public can afford and be assured of repeat business.

Alcohol and drug addiction counselors whose purpose is to rehabilitate addicts so that they can reclaim the beauty of living drug-free have always opposed the use of substituting one drug for another, and for good clinical reasons.

The purpose of drug rehab is to restore a normalcy in the lives of people that have been avoiding life’s pain and, consequently the pleasure, as well, by taking opiates or painkillers. The substituting of one drug for another is counter to this noble effort and makes the goal of a drug-free life a futile endeavor. Therefore, the obvious moral prerogative is to free the individual from the compulsive need to take methadone daily or suffer consequences that are quite severe.

To convince the public that methadone maintenance is the only effective treatment for most opiate addicts, the methadone industry documents their business by quoting numerous articles claiming that the brain makes certain irreversible changes during opiate addiction that force the “recovering” addict to continue to supply their bodies with daily doses of opiate medications.

For those who believe this research and don’t investigate further, this argument may seem logical, however, it doesn’t present the obvious argument that even though there are approximately half million people on methadone maintenance, there are literally millions of ex-heroin addicts that are living successful, normal lives without the need to “repair their brain chemistry”. Anecdotal interviews with methadone patients has revealed that it is very hard to find anyone on methadone maintenance that likes their treatment and doesn’t feel enslaved by their need for these daily doses.

Youth making a banner for the MLK parade – sponsored by Narconon and National Alliance for Faith and Justice

Need For Addiction Treatment Seen By Many: A community based approach allows the offender to fund his own treatment with employment begin required and case management fees. This approach adds an overall savings and is much more effective at reducing crime in general. Narconon of Georgia supports drug addiction treatment as an alternative to imprisonment and offers a non twelve step approach to treating drug addiction. Narconon of Georgia provides drug treatment and education.

Drugs and Promiscuity Contribute to Declining Morals in Society: Most people see promiscuity as an unfortunate side effect of drug and alcohol abuse. However, one drug and alcohol rehab facility addresses the morals that seem to be lost along the way that lead to promiscuity. Clients going through treatment at Narconon Louisiana enroll in a course called The Way To Happiness; a common-sense guide to life that proves that not only can addiction be handled, but morals can be restored.

Narconon Clients Take Part In Community Project: This community event is sponsored by the local chamber and other local businesses and will take place the last week in January. Narconon clients will create a man-made sledge out of just cardboard; tape and glue to recognize Narconon drug rehabilitation and promote the message of permanent recovery from substance abuse. …

Narconon Freedom Center Teaches Addicts To Take Care Of Themselves: Once one truly understands why such an idea is important they are far more likely to keep it in in their own life. Drug addicts often failed to take care of themselves during drug addiction as well as with the circumstances leading up to addiction. There are many reasons for addiction and the Narconon program covers all possible angles to enable students to live successful, happy, drug-free lives.

Community Day Activities in South L.A. Celebrate Dr. King’s Spirit: At one of the booths nearly a thousand drug education booklets providing the truth about alcohol and drug abuse were given out to parents, educators, young people and community volunteers and leaders by Narconon California. Roger Davis, Narconon California drug education and prevention presenter remarked; “We were inspired by the many people we met who serve the community and work every day to fulfill Dr. King’s Dream”. Davis, a graduate of the Narconon California Program, continued, … (photo: Handing out Narconon drug education booklets at the MLK event)

Under Age Drinking cost Hawaii nearly $200 million: Mix the underage drinking problem with rising prescription drug abuse in the islands, and there are enough factors leading to a substantial social problem when the state can least afford it. Narconon Hawaii warns the key to resolving this problem is education of youth on the effects of all drugs and alcohol. …

Featured center today is our Narconon center in Northern California at Lake Tahoe. Full drug treatment services in a great location.

Drug treatment info and news | Narconon-News.org | Narconon Reports on the drug addiction scene