Archive for May, 2010
- Psychiatric Distress Leads to Treatment for Substance Abuse
Individuals who suffer from substance abuse are offered many different types of support, from free treatment to counseling. One type of program that assists those struggling with substance abuse in more of an indirect manner is the needle exchange program.
- Afghanistan Opens Treatment Facility for Drug Addicted Police Officers
While Afghanistan is one of the main producers of opium-based drugs, it is also the location for a growing drug problem. According to a New York Times post, the Hospital for Interior Ministry Addicts is a demonstration of the significance of the problem as all of its patients are policemen.
- Dr. Sack of Promises Treatment Centers Talks About Revamping Rehab
Lindsay Lohan is back in the news after she failed to report to a mandatory court hearing in Los Angeles, which resulted in a warrant for her arrest. Judge Marsha Revel of Los Angeles County Superior Court also revoked Lohan’s probation, which she was given after two arrested in 2007 on drunk-driving charges. The judge stipulated that if she makes bail, she will be prohibited from drinking alcohol, required to wear an alcohol-monitoring bracelet, and undergo weekly drug testing.
- Opium Addiction in Afghanistan
The following article was published on BBC News:
- Student Creates Computer Modeling That Identifies Potential New Medications for Nicotine Addiction
A project using cutting-edge computer modeling to identify potential new medications for nicotine addiction won first place distinction at the annual Addiction Science Awards at this year’s Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF)— the world’s largest science competition for high school students. The Intel ISEF Addiction Science Awards were presented at an awards ceremony last night in San Jose, Calif., by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), part of the National Institutes of Health, and Friends of NIDA, a coalition that supports NIDA’s mission.
- Admissions for Teen Substance Abuse Treatment Decline
A report examining the nation’s battle with drug addictions released Wednesday shows marked changes over the last decade in which drugs are abused and who seeks treatment. Among the more surprising findings is that admissions for substance abuse treatment among youths ages 12 to 17 declined 10% between 2002 and 2008. This plunge came after a 13% increase from 1998 to 2002.
- Heroin and Drug Addiction in Lebanon
Drug abuse and heroin addiction are rising among Lebanon’s youth, and many are trying to ignore the problem.
- Mice Can Synthesize Their Own Morphine
Traces of morphine in urine samples have been considered a clear proof of drug use or the consumption of food containing poppy in the past. Now, a study by a team of scientists from the Institute of Environmental Research at TU Dortmund and the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center in St Louis, Missouri, proved for the first time that mice—and probably humans and other mammals—can produce their own morphine in their bodies.
- Studying the Separate and Joint Effects of Alcohol and Tobacco on the Brain
A new study has found that alcohol abuse elevated the expression of a distinct set of genes in the brain’s nucleus accumbens (NAC) and ventral tegmental area (VTA), while nicotine blunted this effect in the VTA. The NAC is a core region of the mesocorticolimbic dopaminergic system and is interconnected with the VTA and the prefrontal cortex. The mesocorticolimbic system is thought to be central to the reinforcing effects of many drugs and plays an important role in addiction.
- Man Blames Public Enemies Movie and Drug Addiction for Crime Spree
Hollywood and drugs can make for an interesting combination. In the case of a Shelton man, it was the Johnny Depp movie, “Public Enemies” that inspired him to rob two banks in Shelton to get the drug money he needed.