New Drug “Cheese” Still Rising in Use

Currently there is a new drug being abused by many school aged kids called “cheese.” No, this is not the fattening, processed or non-processed, dairy product sold in grocery stores, restaurants etc. As we covered before, “Cheese” is actually a form of black tar heroin that is blended with crushed Tylenol PM or other similar cold medicines.

The abuse of this drug is spreading the fastest in the West and Midwest parts of the country. In recent days, Dallas, TX has reported having major problems with the abuse of this drug.

Because it is very inexpensive ($2.00 per hit on average) school age children are its most common abusers starting as young as age 9. Once someone uses this drug they become hooked almost immediately because of the addictive qualities of the heroin and will then continue to use this drug as many as 10-12 times per day.

Some that first try the drug will experience physical withdrawal symptoms after the first 6 hours of use. Many kids that start using this drug cannot stop once they’ve started using “cheese” because of these heavy physical withdrawal symptoms including nausea, vomiting and headache.

Apparently, “cheese” got its name because when the drugs are mixed, it looks like Parmesan cheese.

Currently areas that have the most problems with “cheese” abuse addiction are trying to get many people from the community educated on this drug and its signs and symptoms of use and abuse in an effort to stop new users from trying this drug.

For the many already hooked on “cheese” a drug rehabilitation program is the only solution.

Article by Eric

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California’s Proposition 36 – Are we setting people up for failure by sending them to drug rehab programs with low success rates?

Under the state of California’s Proposition 36, anyone convicted of drug possession has three chances to complete a drug and/or alcohol rehabilitation program before they are sent to prison to serve time for their offenses.

According to a recent article released by the San Francisco Chronicle, an assessment of California’s Proposition 36 has just been done and shows that half of those sentenced to drug rehab never completed a program and a quarter never showed up. And even those that complete most treatment programs often do not end up staying off drugs long term as many programs offered have a permanent recovery rate of 3-10%.

In fact, I spoke to a former addict who told me that while in a program he was told that only 1 out of 10 would complete it and out of those, one would stay off drugs.

Currently in California, the governor demanded that judges be allowed to put those in jail who do not complete treatment and/or who continue to use drugs. But, statistics show that jailing drug addicts also does not solve the problem.

There are a few drug rehab programs offered that have over 70% success rates for recovery but why are these not offered to those required to do treatment so that they have a very good chance for permanent recovery from addiction? Why would the government not fund or provide financing for those programs that achieve very good results?

Are we setting drug addicts up for failure by allowing them to go to programs with low success rates?

Article by Eric

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Amphetamines and Methamphetamine

According to a recent study done by the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, the use of methamphetamine and amphetamines increase the risk of stroke in young adults. This includes the use and abuse of the illegal drug methamphetamine, which is a dangerous stimulant that is widely abused in the United States, as well cocaine and other amphetamines.

Currently there are many legally prescribed amphetamines for “diseases” such as ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder) and ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) that produce the same effect as a drug like methamphetamine and/or cocaine that have been widely abused over the last few years.

The abuse of prescription drugs like Adderall and Ritalin is a national problem.

According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, visits to U.S. emergency rooms rose 21% from 2004 to 2005 because of the misuse of prescription drugs. Visits to the ER because of abuse of illegal drugs stayed the same.

Many people who were prescribed drugs such as Adderall or Ritalin as children later end up abusing illegal stimulants such as methamphetamine or even cocaine as adults. According to many drug treatment centers and those using both methamphetamine and/or legally prescribed amphetamines are at a higher risk for stroke and other health issues as young adults and later in life.

The most alarming thing about this is that many school age children are put on these drugs on a daily basis. But, do we really understand the side effects and long standing damage we are doing by putting kids on drugs?

Are we setting them up for major medical problems and even addiction later in life? And is there a better way to handle learning disabilities and problems in school that does not involve drugging children?

Article by Eric

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Required Drug Rehab

Presently, the Russian government is considering passing a bill that would require all child drug addicts to get into treatment.

The bill would require all children under the age of 16 to attend treatment after going through a judicial procedure. Parents’ consent would be required for those legally living with parents but for all other children, who are orphans and whose parents are out of the picture, treatment would be determined by school administrators.

In the country of Russia, this is a very controversial topic that has human rights activists in an uproar and specialists in the drug treatment field skeptical. According to the Federal Drug Control Service of Russia, between 80,000 and 100,000 people die annually in the country from overdoses and problems related to the use of dangerous drugs. Most are under the age of 30.

At least 1.8 million Russians (more than 1 percent of the country’s 143 million citizens) are officially listed as drug addicts by the organization. Experts say the real figure could be many times that. A further 6 million are said to have had experience using these drugs, and 15 million Russians admitted having tried them at least once.

Currently in the United States, there are over 20 million people suffering through drug and/or alcohol addiction and rehabilitation is usually not a requirement unless the individual is court ordered into treatment. This covers a very small percentage of drug addicts. Some make the decision to get help on their own while others are given ultimatums by loved ones’ or family members. A large percent of those addicted to drugs never make the decision to get help and end up in prison, or worse.

Should the United States require all drug addicts to get into treatment? Should there be a bill in our country that even requires minors (with parents consent) to get help if they are addicted?

Article by Eric

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Which drugs killed Anna Nicole Smith?

Okay, so we’ve held out as long as possible on this story, but when it was announced by the California State Medical Board to news outlets that a Los Angeles psychiatrist is being investigated for prescribing all of the11 types of drugs that were found in Anna Nicole Smith's room at the Florida hotel where she died, we had to chime in. The report said that while they were not all prescribed directly to Anna Nicole, they were all provided by the same doctor.

Another doctor is also being investigated by the California State Medical Board for prescribing the painkiller methadone and the sedative Ativan to Smith, both of which were found in her system when she died.

As reported earlier, the medical examiner did state that the mixture of prescription drugs is what killed her, but which ones or which combinations caused the most damage?

For her son, it was a combination of methadone and two antidepressants, Lexapro and Zoloft.

The common factors in the death of Anna Nicole and her son are methadone and psychiatric drugs. Do you think the same psychiatrist was involved?

Should this be a lesson to the millions of people out there taking similar drug combinations and thinking they’re safe? If so, it is a tragic way for the truth to come out, but if you do some searching, you’ll find that Smith and her son weren’t exactly the only ones in the country who died from these drugs this past year, only the most famous.

Article by Eric

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