AUTHOR: Romie DATE: 3/14/2007 10:42:00 AM ----- BODY:

The American Medical Association (AMA) has been placing targeted ads in college publications asking them to "Stop the Madness" with regards to taking money from the alcohol beverage industry for ads during college athletics. The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) responded to the ad by saying that reports show the age of people watching events such as the NCAA basketball tournament are largely adults, and they are limited to only one commercial per hour. Is this a true enough statement to ignore the issue, or is it simply a justification for the money these schools get in return, which can range from the thousands to the millions, for alcohol-related sponsors? The AMA maintains that alcohol ads undermine efforts to prevent campus binge drinking and alcohol-related deaths, accidents and sexual assaults. "Universities have finally gotten past the `bad apple' theory -- that it's just a few students," said Laurie Leiber, spokeswoman for the Marin Institute, an alcohol industry watchdog group in California. "They're trying to get away from an alcohol-saturated environment." The new mood comes as public awareness of binge drinking on campuses has heightened in recent years. Colleges have come under fire for largely turning a blind eye to abusive drinking on their campuses, often by underage students. Statistics from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health report that over 7 million young people under the age of 21 are current binge drinkers, which is defined as having five or more drinks on the same occasion in the past month. In addition, the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) concluded that 30 percent of Americans aged 18-20 were binge drinkers in the past month. Frequent binge drinkers were eight times more likely than non-binge drinkers to miss a class, fall behind in schoolwork, get hurt or injured, and damage property. College campuses have been notorious for heavy alcohol consumption, and in recent years several schools made national headlines because of deaths on campus due to alcohol poisoning. Does it really have to come to a point where kids are dying before colleges take a stand? Article by Eric Digg It | Reddit | Newsvine Seed Add to your bookmarks in: del.icio.us | Yahoo! | Google | Furl | ma.gnolia | Spurl

Labels: alcohol, children, school

-------- AUTHOR: Romie DATE: 2/28/2007 01:35:00 PM ----- BODY:

A question often asked by many students is, “What is the worst drug?” Of course the answer is relative to viewpoint and what kind of damage is caused, whether it is physical damage, emotional pain and suffering, damage to the family, cost involved, or some kind of combination. It has been suggested that, while drugs like crack, heroin and meth are extremely deadly, hallucinogens like LSD (acid) are the ones with the worst lingering effects. The reason is because they alter the mind and its perceptions, and people can have “acid flashbacks” for many years after they stopped taking the drug. LSD (lysergic acid diethylamide) is one of the major drugs making up the hallucinogen class of drugs. Hallucinogens cause hallucinations—profound distortions in a person’s perception of reality. Under the influence of hallucinogens, people see images, hear sounds, and feel sensations that seem real but do not exist. Some hallucinogens also produce rapid, intense emotional swings. The effects of LSD are unpredictable. They depend on the amount taken; the user's personality, mood, and expectations; and the surroundings in which the drug is used. Usually, the user feels the first effects of the drug about 30 minutes after taking it. The physical effects include dilated pupils, higher body temperature, increased heart rate and blood pressure, sweating, loss of appetite, sleeplessness, dry mouth, and tremors. Users refer to their experience with LSD as a "trip" and when it is a frightening experience it is called a "bad trip." These experiences are long; typically they begin to clear after about 12 hours. Some LSD users experience severe, terrifying thoughts and feelings, fear of losing control, fear of insanity, death and despair while using LSD. Some fatal accidents have occurred during states of LSD intoxication and people have been known to get stuck in a bad trip and display extreme paranoia or psychosis. Most users of LSD voluntarily decrease or stop its use over time. LSD is not considered a physically addictive drug since it does not produce intense physical cravings like other drugs. However, a tolerance to the drug can still build, requiring more of the toxin to be ingested to experience another trip. Use of hallucinogens, and especially LSD, has decreased in recent years. In fact, according to the Monitoring the Future Survey, 0.7 percent of high school seniors reported past-month use. The rate is still higher than the overall usage, where only 0.1 percent of people aged 12 or older used the drug in the last 30 days prior to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health. It seems to be catching on that it is one of the worst drugs, as evidenced by the drop in usage. Why risk becoming a vegetable? Article by Eric Mitchell StumbleUpon Toolbar

Labels: LSD, school

-------- AUTHOR: Romie DATE: 2/16/2007 12:34:00 PM ----- BODY:

Here's a heated topic for you – school-based student drug testing. The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), the home of the Nation’s Drug Czar, continues to push for random testing in schools for illicit substances. There are some schools that have implemented drug testing for extra-curricular activities, but some civil liberties activists and some parents are fighting a school-wide approach vigorously. Why would people not want to check if their kids are on drugs? One argument is that it is an infringement on their rights. Another argument is that drug testing is not an effective deterrent from drug use. Neither topic has a definitive position, but the leading office against drug use in America is advocating for it and providing more funds for schools that want to implement drug testing. ONDCP Director John Walters was quoted in a press release as saying “Since 2001, there has been a 23 percent decline in youth substance use, with over 840,000 fewer students using drugs. Random student drug testing can play an important role in continuing that progress”. How much the increase in student drug testing played a role in that decrease is questionable. Also questionable is how that 23 percent was calculated – especially against annual population increases. Are there really 840,000 less students using drugs? We sure hope so. It could be looked at this way – substance abuse has a huge negative impact on our society, almost immeasurable. Any effective measure to lessen that impact is a good thing for now and for our future. Article by Eric

Labels: children, school

--------