Reporting the news in Mexico can be a deadly occupation, especially for those covering the drug war. But where militant thugs have been successful in stifling the media, they are virtually powerless against those who have taken to social media to “report” the war.

It’s not only Mexican residents caught in the crossfire taking to Twitter, YouTube and Facebook, those across the border in the U.S. are also using social media as a tool. Residents are using social media to protect themselves from the drug cartels that stop at nothing to push their product and protect their turf.
The violence began in earnest when the Mexican president declared war on drugs, but crept up another few notches when two major partnering cartels split and declared war on each other. Since the declarations of war, it is estimated that as many as 100,000 people have been killed and another 30,000 have seemingly vanished into thin air. Many residents try to escape the most violent areas, which has put more than 200,000 in a displaced status.

Some of the only news sources available now are through Twitter and Facebook. While news footage once came from the major broadcast companies in Mexico, camera phones with crudely edited footage of the war between the government and the cartels is being placed on YouTube instead. Media outlets in the U.S. are also depending on these amateur videos as their go-to source for footage.

America’s ongoing drug dependency is fueling this war. About 90 percent of illicit drugs making their way into the U.S. are coming through Mexico. The biggest cash crop, so to speak, continues to be cocaine.

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, nearly 5 million Americans said they had at one point or other abused cocaine. While those numbers pale in comparison to the drug’s peak in 1982 (10.5 million were believed to be using the drug in that year), it’s still enough to fuel a drug war that is taking lives.

Read more: United Nations Leading International War on Drugs

Curbing drug use isn’t something that can be solely dealt with at a national level. Effective policies must be put in place on a global scale. In 2010, approximately 5 percent of people all over the world, or 230 million individuals, admitted to engaging in illegal drug use at least once.

The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) has been working since 1961 to control drug use in order to preserve public health and welfare. Each year, illegal drugs claim the lives of around 200,000 people. So many of these individuals might not have had to die had they received the help they needed.

Since its inception, the organization has made an effort to combat this issue not only with law enforcement, but also with policies that would address the deeper core issues of health and addiction.

According to Reuters, the UNODC global drug conventions that took place in 1961, 1971 and 1988 have helped standardize the world’s drug regulation policies, reducing the proliferation of illegal drugs. In fact, even as the world’s population has continued to multiply over the last hundred years, global production of opium, for instance, has decreased by 80 percent.

Many individuals addicted to drugs are sick and do not belong in a prison with hardcore criminals. While there are those who would say that legalizing drugs is the answer to combat the international drug problem, proponents of the UNODC efforts say that current measures are working.

But for these measures to continue being effective, countries around the world must offer education, rehabilitation, and social reintegration programs to drug offenders rather than prison sentences. Receiving these individuals as patients instead of criminals presents the greatest opportunity for change so that everyone has the chance to lead a healthy life free from drugs and crime.

Drugs available in your backyard? Teens say drugs easy to get their hands on in New Mexico.

With only two months left in her junior year, Siobhan processed the final documents for her withdrawal from college. Academically, she had done quite well—she’d gotten into a great school, after all—and on paper, no one would be able to decipher the reason for her sudden departure. But Siobhan has been struggling with issues since she moved to her college town—nearly 1,000 miles away from her parent’s home—and those issues finally came to a head. The most pressing issue, and the reason she withdrew from classes, was panic disorder.

Siobhan had a happy childhood—she and her younger sister were well loved by their parents and had participated in music, dance and competitive academic pursuits. They’d had the privilege to travel the world with their grandparents, and had regularly volunteered for the organizations behind the philanthropic pursuits their mother was always overseeing. Aside from her father’s private struggle with clinical depression, everyone had been healthy and seemingly well-adjusted.

When Siobhan was 17, however, she was involved in a serious car accident. A man had sideswiped her in an intersection—Siobhan had been making a legal left turn—and the driver, only 27, was killed. From that day to this, Siobhan experiences panic whenever she rides in a car (she refuses to drive), and sometimes experiences the symptoms of panic attack while simply contemplating impending car travel—racing heart, trembling, profuse sweating and wooziness.

Siobhan’s debilitating fear about the prospect of driving and riding in a car has left her unable to leave her apartment. In addition to her symptoms of panic disorder, she has developed generalized anxiety disorder. Her greatest fears revolve around the idea of losing control and being witnessed mid-attack. She is an intelligent young woman and has excelled in nearly every pursuit, but her panic disorder has begun to truly inhibit her ability to function normally.

Symptoms of Panic Disorder

The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) describes panic disorder as “sudden and repeated attacks of fear that last for several minutes.” These attacks are typically brought on by an individual’s fear of losing control or the imagined threat of danger, and are frequently triggered by a place or circumstance, although sufferers can even experience a panic attack during sleep. Panic attacks can feel like a heart attack, and a sufferer’s fear of having an attack, or the inability to stop it once it has started, may bring on further attacks.

NIMH lists the symptoms for panic disorder as:

• It is estimated that there are 6 million panic disorder sufferers in the U.S. and that nearly twice as many women than men experience its symptoms. Individuals most often acquire the disorder in adolescence or early adulthood, and there exists a genetic component; a person may be predisposed to panic disorder if they have a parent who has an anxiety disorder.  Sudden and repeated attacks of fear
• A feeling of being out of control during a panic attack
• An intense worry about when the next attack will happen
• A fear or avoidance of places where panic attacks have occurred in the past
• Physical symptoms during an attack, such as a pounding or racing heart, sweating, breathing problems, weakness or dizziness, feeling hot or a cold chill, tingly or numb hands, chest pain, or stomach pain

The Problem of Anxiety

According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America, panic disorder frequently occurs with other mental health and physical disorders. Depression, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), asthma, substance abuse, and other anxiety disorders like agoraphobia, generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), social phobia and other phobias, and substance-induced anxiety disorder are some of these frequently co-occurring disorders.

People with panic disorder do not have to suffer; there are effective treatments for this anxiety issue and others. Treatment for panic disorder may include self-directed cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), antidepressants or antianxiety medications, and exposure treatment—a type of CBT that involves exposure to an object or circumstance that causes phobia or panic.

Siobhan is receiving treatment for her panic disorder, and has even encouraged her father to attend therapy for his depression. Healing has not happened overnight but she has seen considerable improvements, and her fear of potential attacks has greatly reduced. She intends to be back in college at the start of the next semester, this time with tools to help her cope with her anxiety and a belief that panic will not rule her life.

College students face many adversaries, panic attacks and anxiety are only the surface. Many students use this time of their life to explore the drug world – however, many do not know the dangers these drugs possess. Read College Student’s Death Sparks Renewed Warnings About the Dangers of Inhalants to learn more.

Teenagers have been pulling all-nighters and cramming for tests for as long as schools have existed. Maybe even you have pulled an all-nighter, fueled by nothing more than a 2-liter bottle of caffeinated soda and the fear of telling your parents you failed an important test. Today, however, many teens are turning to something a lot more powerful than Pepsi or Red Bull to help them stay awake while they study.   They’re using other substances — the kind that can lead to a serious drug addiction — to fuel their academic endeavors.

Study Drugs

The stimulants typically used as “study drugs” are medications — the kind frequently prescribed for mental health conditions such as attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and narcolepsy. In teenagers with a legitimate medical need like ADHD, these drugs have a counterbalancing effect on the brain.  In essence, they help create a calmer state of mind that allows the teen to focus more readily. When used properly by those who need them, prescription stimulants are not addictive.

These same medicines, however, have a different effect on teens who don’t struggle with ADHD.  They start using these medications — for example Ritalin, Concerta, Metadate, or Adderall — with the belief that they will sharpen their focus, boost their energy, help them stay alert, and / or enhance their school performance.  While the drugs may provide bursts of energy and improve alertness temporarily, they also quickly create a vicious cycle — the cycle that can easily lead to drug addiction.  With continued use, teens often find they need increasing amounts of the drugs to get the same effect, so they keep upping the dose.  Eventually they become so dependent on the drug that they can’t function without it.

The drugs, which have street names like Vitamin R, college crack, or Addy, can be taken in their original pill or capsule form. Some teens will crush the pill or open the capsule to snort the drug directly into their system. Regardless of how they are taken, there is no evidence that study drugs boost academic performance in teens not diagnosed with ADHD.

A survey found that approximately 10% of teenagers admit to using study drugs.  However, the same survey also revealed that only one in 100 parents believe their teen is using the drugs. The study also found that use was concentrated among white students, while African-American and Latino teens tended to use them less. The use of study drugs rises to as much as 35% in college students. In addition, nearly 30% of teens surveyed believe it is safer to use prescription drugs than illegal street drugs.

Access to Study Drugs

Teenagers can be very savvy when it comes to acquiring these drugs, particularly if they’ve become addicted to them or already struggle with a drug addiction. For example, some will game the health care system by learning the symptoms of ADHD.  They convince their parents and doctor that they have the disorder, receiving a legal prescription that then allows them access to one of these study drugs. This method may also permit some adolescents to receive the medication under a parent’s health care plan.  This allows them to get the drug without coming up with the money to purchase it themselves.

Another way teens access study drugs is by theft. Some will take advantage of a family member with ADHD, stealing from his or her supply of legitimately prescribed medications. Some teens will steal physicians’ prescription pads to write out their own authorization for the drugs.

Some teens will illegally purchase stimulant medications. For example, they may buy a few pills from a friend who has a legitimate prescription. In fact, research shows that one out of every three teens believes it’s OK to take medications that have not been prescribed to them.

Why Teens Abuse Study Drugs

Teenagers face increasing pressure to succeed in school. Kids can be worried that if they don’t get good grades, they won’t be accepted into competitive colleges, won’t win needed grant or scholarship funds, or will become ineligible for high school or college sports. When health science researchers analyzed Twitter feeds for 6 months, they found that Adderall mentions spiked during typical finals periods. Mentions of the study drug were also higher mid-week and lower on the weekend. The findings suggest that students are talking about Adderall during the usual periods of academic stress.

Danger of Study Drug Addiction

Like any prescription medication, ADHD drugs have side effects — some of which are quite common with medications in general.  Teens who take these drugs may experience stomach upset, sleep problems, decreased appetite, or daytime drowsiness. Long-term use can also slow height gain, with at least one expert reporting that a user might be as much as a quarter-inch shorter each year.

Study drug abuse has other side effects as well. For example, some individuals taking ADHD medications have reported heart problems. This can be an especially serious issue if an abuser lives with an undiagnosed heart condition. A teen might also develop tics, or repetitive motions, such as head jerking or excessive blinking.

Stimulants may also alter mood. This often occurs as the effects of the drug wear off. Sometimes referred to as the “rebound effect,” some teens may become very sensitive or more irritable. Others may appear to react differently than is normal for them.  For example, they may appear to be sad even though they don’t feel sad. These types of side effects are more common in short-acting stimulants.

The abuse of study drugs can also mask the effects of alcohol. A teen using study drugs and drinking may not realize how intoxicated he’s become. He may binge drink because he doesn’t feel the effects of the alcohol. The combination of alcohol and stimulant medication can lead to dangerous situations that result in blackouts, alcohol poisoning, drunken driving and serious accidents and injuries. Approximately two out of three emergency room visits involving ADHD medications also involved at least one other substance, such as alcohol.

Warning Signs of Study Drug Abuse

• Altered mood or behavior, including irritability or intense mood swings
• Periods of sleeplessness
• Decreased appetite or weight loss
• Lapses in memory
• Dilated pupils
• Dry nose and mouth
• Secretive behavior, such as isolation or unexplained spending

What Parents Can Do

If you suspect your teen is abusing study drugs, seek professional help. An addiction specialist can help you come up with a plan to get your teen into rehab. Treatment will include a mental health assessment to identify other challenges your teen may be facing. For instance, he or she may have a co-occurring mental health condition, such as depression or anxiety, that is contributing to the addictive behavior.

Because study drug abuse is often triggered by a desire to perform well, therapy can teach your teen how to deal with stress and anxiety in a healthy manner. A therapist may introduce helpful relaxation techniques, such as breathing exercises or progressive muscle relaxation. Other recommended stress relief remedies may include physical activity, like regular exercise, or a creative outlet, such as journaling.

If your teen does not have ADHD and is abusing Adderall or other stimulant medications, it can lead to drug addiction. Talk with an addiction expert who’s experienced with treating adolescents. Your teenager’s life and well-being are worth more than his or her ability to excel in school.

Read More about Student Drug Abuse: College Student’s Death Sparks Renewed Warnings About the Dangers of Inhalants

The college years are filled with opportunities to compete. From academic contests to dorm room antics, there is a drive on campus to define hierarchies and social order. Even in college partying, where the scene may seem to be much more chaos and order, there are social ordering activities taking place. Drinking games are often used to show how a person handles alcohol or can retain their cognitive abilities while under the influence.

Previous studies have shown that engaging in drinking games can predict whether a college student will drink heavily. However, little is known about whether the type of drinking game will affect how heavily a student will drink. Recently a team of researchers examined various drinking games and their relationship to the drinking behaviors of college students (LaBrie, Ehret & Hummer, 2013).

The participants were recruited through two universities located on the west coast. They were invited to participate in a web-based screening. The researchers used the results to include only the participants who reported consuming at least one drink per week, resulting in 3,421 participants or 68.3 percent of the respondents to the survey.

The participants were asked about demographics, including whether or not they participated in the Greek system and also were asked about their drinking game activities. The researchers asked the participants how many days they participated in drinking games, the games played and the alcohol consumed on the occasions when the games were played.

Alcohol Games leading to Alcohol Abuse and Addiction

To get an understanding of the various games the students mentioned, the researchers used the Internet to search descriptions of the games. There were 100 distinct games coded by the researchers, distributed into five categories.

The results showed that competition games were the most popular games, followed by chance games. The majority of respondents indicated that the competition games were also the games in which they drank the most alcohol.

Peak drinking games were reported differently by gender, race and Greek status. Students who were Caucasian males who participated in the Greek system were most likely to report peak drinking connected with competition games. The highest number of drinks associated with a peak drinking game was found to occur during extreme consumption games.

The authors note several limitations associated with the findings. For instance, the results were based on self-report and suffer the usual possible problems associated with recall bias. In addition, the question related to drinking games was open-ended and may have affected how the students responded.

The findings of the study provide new insight into the influence that the atmosphere and culture of a college campus and its traditions relating to drinking games may impact students’ drinking behaviors. It may serve to educate students about the risks of engaging in tempting competition that leads to heavy drinking.

Alcohol leads to more than addiction, but medical issues too. Read: Alcohol, a Preventable Cancer Risk ‘Hiding in Plain Sight’

According to a recent report, Wisconsin’s binge-drinking problem is costing the state somewhere around $7 billion a year. Surveys show that Wisconsin residents binge drink at a rate of around 25 percent, which is the highest in the nation.

The survey considers having five or more drinks in a sitting as a binge. But the average Wisconsin resident ups the ante and binge drinks on an average of nine beverages per sitting.
A good chunk of the cost to the state, which is $6.8 billion total, comes in the form of lost worker productivity, which accounts for more than one-third of that total. Vehicle accidents, health care costs and court costs make up around another third of the total.

Despite the prevalence of this drinking, the state only generated less than $70 million in taxes on booze, which barely makes up for one percent of the burden that booze puts on the state. Given the popularity of alcohol in the state, voters aren’t going to raise taxes on the product, either. The tax hasn’t changed since the late 1960s.

To break it down into what alcohol abuse is costing each individual resident, experts have put the tab at $1,200 per capita. That includes children. In 2011, it is reported that more than 1,500 residents died in alcohol-related incidents. About 48,000 were hospitalized and another 60,000 were arrested under the influence.

Taking the good with the bad is a life lesson that everyone learns at some point. But young people involved in the rave culture are finding that drugs bringing on extremely intense feelings of pleasure have an equally displeasing depressing effect.

The drug, Molly, has a name that sounds innocent enough, but unsuspecting users are devastated by the crash they experience when coming off the high. In some cases, the depressing feelings lead to a near paralyzing state where the user can’t find the mental strength to eat or communicate.

The intense emotional ride and the relatively cheap cost of that ride are helping push the popularity of Molly further every day. The drug is actually the powder or crystal form of MDMA (AKA Ecstasy). The popular drug Ecstasy is actually derived from a variety of drugs, not just MDMA.  Molly is a purer form of Ecstasy and actually gets its name from “molecule,” which is representative of its place as the vital ingredient to MDMA.

The DEA has classified Molly as a Schedule I controlled substance due to its addictive nature and because it has not been embraced by the medical community as having any usable characteristics in health care.

Users who take too much of the drug will have a difficult time with temperature regulation and can actually experience hyperthermia, which can lead to liver, cardiovascular and kidney failure.

The current statistics from emergency rooms across the nation don’t indicate that the use of this drug is widespread yet. But the massive growth in its popularity in such a short time has experts concerned – there was an approximate 125 percent growth in the use of the drug between 2004 and 2009.

Continue reading: Understanding the Effects of Substituted Amphetamines

Addiction can be challenging to treat, and some addictions are particularly so. For example, many individuals who enter a substance abuse treatment center for cocaine addiction and complete the treatment program soon return due to relapse. The tools acquired in treatment for dealing with cravings are sometimes not effective in patients who have a particularly challenging case of addiction to cocaine.

A new study indicates that there may be help for those who have a cocaine addiction that does not respond to traditional treatments. While there has been little success in treating cocaine addiction with medications, the study finds that this strategy may be effective in certain situations.

Disulfiram is a medication that has been approved for treatment in alcohol addiction for 50 years. Its effectiveness is rooted in the blocking of acetaldehyde metabolism, causing acetaldehyde to build up in the body. The result is an unpleasant mix of nausea, headache and vomiting, accompanied by an increased heart rate. Those who take Disulfiram may quickly learn to avoid drinking alcohol.

Based on previous studies at Yale University that linked a Disulfiram-related reduction in the use of cocaine when paired with alcohol or opiate dependence, researchers recently published new findings in the journal Biological Psychiatry that support the use of Disulfiram in treating cocaine addiction.

The study’s findings show that Disulfiram is able to inhibit dopamine ß-hydroxylase, or DßH, which is an enzyme responsible for the conversion of dopamine to norepinephrine.

Led by Thomas Kosten, the researchers examined Disulfiram’s effectiveness among cocaine and opioid dependent participants who received either the medication or a placebo over a ten-week period.

The researchers also genotyped the DßH gene, which controls the levels of the enzyme to determine which variant of the gene was present in each patient. The researchers wanted to determine whether the variant impacted the success of the Disulfiram as a treatment for cocaine addiction.

The study results showed that Disulfiram was effective in reducing the use of cocaine among the participants according to the DßH gene variant they possessed. The data supported the researchers’ expectation that Disulfiram impacted cocaine consumption by blocking DßH.

The researchers note that there was a significantly greater effectiveness related to Disulfiram use among those participants that carried the genetic variant, and this accounts for perhaps about 60 percent of cocaine addicts. This supports the use of pharmacogenetic matching to establish the best strategy for treatment of cocaine addiction.

The findings are particularly promising, given the challenge that has been connected with treatment for cocaine addiction. While the medication may not effectively treat every individual with cocaine addiction, it may help close the gap for those who carry the necessary genetic variant.

 
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