Despite Intense Media
Attention, Study Finds Bath Salts Rarely Used by College Students at a
Large Southeastern University
“Despite extensive media coverage and the products
continuing to be sold in local stores, use of synthetic cathinones was
extremely rare in a random sample of young adults and was dwarfed by other
novel drugs,” according to data from a survey of college students at a large
southeastern university. Less than 1% of the students reported ever using
synthetic cathinones, also known as bath salts—substantially less than those
reporting lifetime use of other novel drugs, such as synthetic cannabinoids
(14.3%), Salvia divinorium (7.9%), or purple drank (6.5%). The drugs most
commonly used by college students were marijuana and prescription stimulants
and painkillers used nonmedically (see figure below). In light of their
findings, the authors suggest that “the media attention focusing on synthetic
cathinone use as a growing epidemic may be largely misplaced.” Other national
surveys of drug use in the past year† have found similarly low rates of bath
salt use among high school students, college students, and young adults not in
college. SOURCE: Adapted by CESAR from Stogner, J.M. and Miller, B.L.,
“Investigating the ‘Bath Salt’ Panic: The Rarity of Synthetic Cathinone Use
Among Students in the United States,” Drug and Alcohol Review, Early View, May
29, 2013
Four
alcohol brands dominate popular music mentions
Patron tequila, Hennessy cognac, Grey Goose vodka, and Jack
Daniel's whiskey—accounted for more than half of alcohol brand mentions in the
songs that mentioned alcohol use in Billboard's most popular song lists in
2009, 2010 and 2011, according to a new study from researchers at the Boston
University School of Public Health and the Center on Alcohol Marketing and
Youth (CAMY) at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. The study,
published online by Substance Use & Misuse and the first to examine
the context of specific brand mentions in depth, found that alcohol use was
portrayed as overwhelmingly positive, with negative consequences rarely
mentioned. Of the 720 songs examined, 167 (23.2%) mentioned alcohol and 46
(6.4%) mentioned specific alcohol brands. The leading four brands accounted for
more than half (51.6%) of all alcohol brand mentions. Alcohol mentions were
most common in urban songs (rap, hip-hop and R&B – 37.7% of songs mentioned
alcohol), followed by country (21.8%) and pop (14.9%). At least 14 long-term
studies have found that exposure to alcohol marketing in the mass media
increases the likelihood that young people will start drinking or, if already
drinking, drink more. Adolescents in the U.S. spend approximately 2.5 hours per
day listening to music. "Given the heavy exposure of youth to popular
music, these results suggest popular music may serve as a major source of
promotion of alcohol use among youth," said study co-author David
Jernigan, PhD, director of CAMY. "The findings lay a strong foundation for
further research." The researchers used Billboard Magazine annual
listings of the most popular songs in 2009, 2010 and 2011 to identify 720
unique songs in four genres: urban, pop, country and rock. Three coders
analyzed the lyrics of each song to determine alcohol references, brand
references and the context for each. Researchers found alcohol references in
167 songs. References to tequila, cognac, vodka and champagne brands were more
prevalent in urban music (R&B, hip-hop and rap), while references to
whiskey and beer brands were more common in country or pop music. There were no
references to alcohol in the rock music examined. "A small number of
alcohol brands and beverages appear to make frequent appearances in popular
music," said Michael Siegel, MD, MPH, professor of Community Health
Sciences at the Boston University School of Public Health. "If these
exposures are found to influence youth drinking behavior, then further public
health efforts must be focused on youth exposure to alcohol portrayals in
popular music." Alcohol is responsible for at least 4,700 deaths per year
among young people under the age of 21 in the U.S. More than 70 percent of high
school students have consumed alcohol, and about 22 percent engage in heavy
episodic drinking.
Teen Girls Drinking
Alcohol at Higher Risk of Breast Cancer
Drinking alcohol during teens and early adulthood increases
risk of breast cancer in women, a new study reported. Researchers from
Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis said that they have found
a link between alcohol consumption in early age and breast cancer later in
life. Previous research had usually assessed alcohol consumption in women mid
or post-childbearing years. The current study shows that teen girls who drink
excess amounts of alcohol might be at a greater risk of breast cancer. About 25
percent of youth aged between 12 and 20 years reported drinking alcohol and
about 16 percent said that they binge drink, according to the National Survey
on Drug Use and Health ( 2011). Continue
here.
Animal House college
becomes temperance leader
How many calories are there in a bottle of beer? That’s one
of the talking points that counsellors at US universities have begun to use to
discourage students from high-risk drinking, following a new approach begun on
the campus most closely associated with alcohol abuse. And it appears to be
working. The campaign began at Dartmouth College, the Ivy League institution
that inspired the 1978 frat house comedy National Lampoon’s Animal House. It
forgoes the futile tradition of education sessions at orientations for new
students, in favor of a more individualized, practical response to students
found to have a problem. Rest
of this story is here.
To prevent school
violence, teachers learn how to spot mental illness
In classrooms across the country, teachers are going back to
school to learn how to spot symptoms of mental illness among their students.
It's all part of an effort to prevent incidents such as this week's shooting at
an elementary school in Georgia, which could have ended in disaster were it not
for the quick thinking of school bookkeeper Antoinette Tuff. Suspect
20-year-old Michael Brandon Hill told Tuff he was mentally unstable and had
nothing to live for, but she calmed him down, and convinced him to surrender.
Mental illness also played a role in the December shooting deaths at Sandy Hook
Elementary in Newton, Conn., and the massacre at Columbine High School in
Colorado 14 years ago. Please
click here to continue reading.
More Than One-Third of
Designated Drivers in a Southeastern U.S. College Town Had Been Drinking
More than one-third of designated drivers leaving bars in a
southeastern U.S. college town had been drinking, according to a recently
released study of 1,071 bar patrons. Of the 165 self-identified designated
drivers, 35% had a breath alcohol concentration (BrAC) at or above .02%,
including 18% who had a BrAC that “significantly inhibited driving ability and
psychomotor function” (≥ .05% or greater). According to the authors, “these
findings identify the need for consensus across researcher, layperson, and
communication campaigns that a [designated driver] must be someone who has
abstained from drinking entirely. This is especially important considering that
alcohol-related driver impairment, such as divided attention, is further
exacerbated by the unsafe actions of drunken passengers (e.g., roughhousing
with the driver)” Adapted by CESAR from Barry, A.E., Chaney, B.H., and Stellefson,
M.L., “Breath Alcohol Concentrations of Designated Drivers,” Journal of Studies
on Alcohol and Drugs, 74(4):509-513, 2013.
Psychedelic Drugs No Risk
to Mental Health, Possibly Beneficial
Using classic psychedelic drugs does not raise the risk for
mental health problems; on the contrary, it may offer some protection, new
research suggests. Click
here to read top line report.
Primary care patient
characteristics associated with completion of 6-month buprenorphine treatment
Opioid addiction is prevalent in the United States.
Detoxification followed by behavioral counseling (abstinence-only approach)
leads to relapse to opioids in most patients. An alternative approach is
substitution therapy with the partial opioid receptor agonist buprenorphine,
which is used for opioid maintenance in the primary care setting. This study
investigated the patient characteristics associated with completion of 6-month
buprenorphine/naloxone treatment in an ambulatory primary care office. Click
here to read more.
Rate of Prescription Drug
Abuse Among Young Adults Holds Steady at 5 Percent
A national survey released Wednesday finds 5.3 percent of
young adults used prescription drugs for nonmedical purposes in the past month,
similar to rates in the previous two years. The survey found rates of teen
drinking, including binge drinking, in the past month were lower last year
compared with 2002 and 2009. Prescription drug abuse rates among adults ages 18
to 25 was significantly lower last year than in 2009, when 6.4 percent of young
adults used prescription drugs for nonmedical purposes, according to the 2012
National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), conducted by the Substance
Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). The report was
released in conjunction with the 24th annual National Recovery Month. SAMHSA
found 11.2 percent of Americans drove under the influence of alcohol at least
once last year, compared with 11.1 percent in 2011 and 14.2 percent in 2002.
Approximately 9 percent of the population—23.9 million Americans—12 years and
older used illicit drugs in the previous month. Marijuana is the most commonly
used illicit drug, the survey found, with 7.3 percent of Americans saying they
are current users. The number of people ages 12 and older who said they used
heroin in the past year increased from 373,000 in 2007, to 669,000 in 2012.
“These findings show that while we have made progress in preventing some
aspects of substance abuse we must redouble our efforts to reduce and eliminate
all forms of it throughout our nation,” SAMHSA Administrator Pamela S. Hyde
said in a news release. “These statistics represent real people, families and
communities dealing with the devastating consequences of abuse and addiction.
We must strive to prevent further abuse and provide the hope of treatment and
recovery to all people needing help.”
Are You Drinking Too Much?
The Myth Of Moderation
Not long ago wine, or any form of alcohol, was considered a
preventative beverage. Before we had sanitary drinking water, wine was the
safest bet in town. Good mothers ensured their children enjoyed a morning cup
of mead or wine (no strawberry milk in this fiefdom) for calories as well as
for prevention of infection. In the 1930’s my father contracted tuberculosis
and he was prescribed a common Irish cure: a Guinness a day. Even the sage
Benjamin Franklin believed that wine was a phenomenal preservative. Continue
reading here.
Push to lower legal limit
of intoxication to 0.05 stirs debate
Federal agency says lowering legal limit of intoxication
needed to battle 'national epidemic' of impaired driving; critics say proposed
level no more negligent than distracted driving. Rest
of this article is here.
CVS Revokes Dispensing
Privileges for Doctors Who Prescribe Too Many Painkillers
CVS has announced it has revoked dispensing privileges for
more than 36 physicians and other healthcare providers who wrote large numbers
of prescriptions for painkillers, NBC News reports. The company described its
program to evaluate prescription data in The New England Journal of Medicine.
The analysis included prescriptions for hydrocodone, oxycodone, alprazolam,
methadone and carisoprodol from March 2010 through January 2012. Almost one
million providers are included in the company’s prescriber database.
Prescribing rates were compared with other providers in the same specialty and
region. The company took into account patients’ ages and the number who paid
for the drugs with cash. The analysis revealed one prescriber wrote more than
44,000 doses of high-risk drugs, compared with 662 prescriptions for similar
providers, the article notes. The company asked 42 providers for more
information about the high number of painkiller prescriptions they wrote. Six
gave reasons the company considered legitimate, such as being the medical
director of a hospice. In addition to the 36 providers whose prescribing
privileges were initially revoked, several more have been suspended as the
company continues its investigation. “This isn’t a definitive solution to the
problem,” said CVS Chief Medical Officer Troyen Brennan. “We wanted to share
what it was that we did and have other people in healthcare, including other
pharmacies, look at what we did and discuss what some more comprehensive
solutions might be.” In September 2012, the Drug Enforcement Administration
revoked the licenses to dispense controlled substances for two CVS pharmacies
in Florida, after accusing them of dispensing excessive amounts of oxycodone.
Rate of Emergency
Department Visits for Alcohol-Related Diagnoses
From 2001–2002 to 2009–2010, the rate of emergency
department visits for alcohol-related diagnoses for males increased 38%, from
68 to 94 visits per 10,000 population. Over the same period, the visit rate for
females also increased 38%, from 26 to 36 visits per 10,000 population.
Throughout the period, the visit rate for males was higher than the visit rate
for females.
Read more here.
Friends' Online Photos May
Sway Teens' Behavior
When it comes to photos of risky behavior posted on friends'
social networking sites, it seems that what teenagers see, teenagers do, new
research shows. A study conducted by researchers at the University of Southern
California found that when teens see pictures of their friends drinking alcohol
or smoking on sites like Facebook and Myspace, they are more likely to drink or
smoke themselves. Click
here to continue reading.
Study: Children's use of
e-cigarettes increasing
Children — like adults — are increasingly trying electronic
cigarettes, according to the first large national study to gauge use by middle
and high school students. About 2 percent of the students said they'd used an
e-cigarette in the previous month, according to a survey done last year. That
was up from 1 percent in 2011.
Continue reading this story here.
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