Mixology Classes, Cash,
and Other Creative Ways Colleges Combat Binge-Drinking
For many, higher ed and binge drinking go hand in hand.
While the phenomenon may never go away, advocates say the public health
campaign might be outdated, and the prevailing message that consuming too much
alcohol is a sexual risk could be falling on deaf ears. Please
click here to continue reading this item.
Surveys yet to link
medical marijuana and teen drug abuse
As the campaign to legalize medical marijuana in Florida
heats up, so too does an enduring worry about whether an herb intended for sick
adults will end up harming teens. Evidence is mounting that heavy pot use among
young teens can cause serious emotional and physical damage. The fear is that
medical marijuana will boost pot consumption by making it more abundant and
socially acceptable. This is one of medical marijuana's hidden dangers,
opponents often say. Surveys of teen pot use, however, tend to dispel the
theory. The research is complicated, but so far, the numbers are reassuring. Please
click here to continue reading this item.
Modern-day addicts defy
the 'junkie' stereotype
The face of opioid addiction is no longer the disheveled,
down-and-out jobless heroin addict on the street corner. Please
click here to continue reading this item.
The Definition of Insanity
How a federal agency undermines treatment for the mentally
ill.
Every time a mass shooting happens in the U.S.—Sandy Hook,
Virginia Tech, Aurora—we have the same national discussion: Why can't we
identify and treat the dangerously mentally ill before they kill? Here is one
infuriating answer. Please
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U.S. drug war slowly
shifts fire away from low-level users
Someone was with Salvatore Marchese when he died of a heroin
overdose, but no one called 911. So his mother, Patty DiRenzo, a legal aide,
began a quest to help make sure that others wouldn’t be afraid to make that
call. She created a Facebook page, wrote New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie nearly
every day and called all 120 members of the state legislature. Please
click here to continue reading this item.
Don't Go to Pot
The 50 states are sometimes called “laboratories of
democracy.” Although the expression is intended to highlight in flattering
terms how innovative they can be, it also suggests that the states’ political
experiments can and do fail. In the event of failure, the hope must be that
damage can be stopped at the state line. Today, the experiment of
state-by-state marijuana legalization is failing before our eyes—and failing most
signally where the experiment has been tried most boldly. The failure is
accelerating even as the forces pushing legalization are on what appears to be
an inexorable march. Please
click here to continue reading this item.
Time to Reroute the
Preschool-to-Prison Pipeline
The New York Times recently reported on the disturbing surge
in violence at the Rikers Island jail complex in New York City, where the use
of force by correction officers has jumped 240 percent over the past decade.
Three days later, MSNBC reported on the disturbing “school-to-prison pipeline”
that is driving our nation’s “problem” children from suspensions straight to
arrests and jail. Most upsetting of all, new data shows this pipeline begins as
early as preschool. Please
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Americans finally
understand that marijuana is less harmful than alcohol
A new Pew survey out today provides yet another illustration
of the failure of America's drug war. By a nearly five-to-one margin, Americans
agree that alcohol is worse for you than marijuana. However you slice the data
up demographically, majorities say the same thing. Please
click here to continue reading this item.
Recovery Movement Endorsed
by United Nations
A resolution on the importance of recovery proposed by the
United States at the 57th session of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) was
approved on March 21st in Vienna, Austria. This resolution marks the
first time in the more than 50-year history of the global anti-drug regime that
the concept of recovery was formally accepted and supported by United Nations
Member States. Please
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Medical Marijuana: What
the Research Shows
Dustin Sulak, DO, is a doctor on the front lines of medical
marijuana. Sulak has recommended various forms of marijuana to his patients and
has seen striking results. Patients with chronic pain needed fewer prescription
pain meds. Patients with multiple sclerosis had less painful muscle spasms.
Patients with severe irritable bowel syndrome began to eat again. Please click here to continue
reading this item.
Legalize Medical
Marijuana, Doctors Say in Survey
A majority of doctors say that medical marijuana should be
legalized nationally and that it can deliver real benefits to patients, a new
survey by WebMD/Medscape finds. WebMD’s web site for health professionals
surveyed 1,544 doctors as more than 10 states consider bills to legalize
medical marijuana. It is already legal in 21 states and Washington, DC. Please click here to continue
reading this item.
Party drug turned
'miracle' cure for depression spurs hype and stubborn hope
The notion that a party drug could be repurposed into a
"miracle" cure for severe, treatment-resistant depression is an
almost irresistible story line in the popular press. And there's no reason why
it can't be recycled using results from the same small, short-duration study
design that long ago attracted some of the world's largest research
organizations still engaged in researching new drugs in one of the most
difficult fields in R&D. Please
click here to continue reading this item.
Is pot getting more
potent?
The average potency of pot has more than tripled in the past
two decades, according to testing done for the federal government. This comes
just over a year after Colorado and Washington legalized the drug and as many
other states consider making it legal for medical or recreational use.
Scientists determine potency by measuring levels of THC, or
delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol, the main psychoactive ingredient that gives
marijuana its “high.” And data from the University of Mississippi’s Potency
Monitoring program found that the average potency of marijuana has jumped from
3.4 percent THC in 1993 to 12.3 percent THC in 2012. Scientists at the lab say
they’ve seen samples as high as 36 percent. Please
click here to continue reading this item.
America’s New Drug Policy
Landscape
Two-Thirds Favor Treatment, Not Jail, for Use of Heroin,
Cocaine.
On Drug Policy, Gov’t Should Focus More On …The public
appears ready for a truce in the long-running war on drugs. A national survey
by the Pew Research Center finds that 67% of Americans say that the government
should focus more on providing treatment for those who use illegal drugs such
as heroin and cocaine. Just 26% think the government’s focus should be on
prosecuting users of such hard drugs. Please
click here to continue reading this item.
Scientists test the brain
region that makes us averse to alcohol
Neuroscientists at the University of Utah investigate the
region of the brain that regulates how sensitive we are to the negative effects
of alcohol.
The brain's relationship to recreational drugs, of which
alcohol is one, involves a complex system of reward and punishment. Alcohol
triggers the brain's reward system, releasing pleasure-inducing
neurotransmitters that make us want to consume more. But the adverse effects of
alcohol - hangovers, sickness and impaired motor function, among other things -
help us to regulate our intake so that the consumption of intoxicants does not
become a problem for us. Please click here to
continue reading this item.
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