Increasing Statistics of Prescription Drug Abuse

In order to survive in this competitive world, frustration, depression and anxiety seems to be ruling our world at every step. To escape from all these troubles, drugs seem to be the most potent medium. Besides the illegal drugs, the prescription drug abuse also leads to a certain kind of addiction. It includes the use of sedatives, mood stabilizers and pain killers used by the victim against the prescription of the doctor ‘dosage. It has been found that a taking the drugs frequently leads to certain kind of addiction. Hence it is a kind of self medication, where the victim takes the drugs without even taking permission from the doctor. It has been found that the statistics of the prescription abuse is increasing day by day. Anti depressants and painkillers are the most frequently abused drugs.

Like many other drugs, prescription drug abuse also creates certain cravings within the individual. As a result, the person cannot resist himself from taking the drugs. He develops an insatiable craving, which becomes so much strong that he has to take one dose everyday at least. It has been found that teenagers are the worst victims of drug and alcohol abuse. Oxycodon and Vicodin are two of the most frequently abused drugs among the teenagers. They get abused to the drugs mainly at the social gatherings or at the parties. In the beginning they take the drugs just out of curiosity to find out what are the reasons for it. But gradually they develop the habit of taking it and finally this turns into an addiction process. So what was earlier a physical craving slowly becomes a psychological craving gradually.

The path to prescription drug abuse begins with experimentation. Though the reasons for drug abuse vary from person to person, yet some of the most common ones are genetics and the influence of social environment, any traumatic event in the childhood, abuse or neglect by the family members, early usage of drugs and also mental disorders like depression and anxiety. Though the symptoms vary from person to person, yet the effects of drug abuse remain almost the same. If the drugs start controlling your life, the more you are moving forward from abuse to drug addiction. This will create a negative impact on the social and the economic life of an individual. If you are on a dangerous path of drug abuse, it is always better to seek medical help as soon as possible.

One of the most dangerous effects of the prescription drug abuse is denial of the use of substances. Though the causes of drug abuse may vary from person to person, yet the mind will always try to rationalize it every time there occurs a severe urge within the body. You may underestimate the amount of drugs that you are taking, but this may create a serious impact on the life.

Prescription Drug Abuse in Adolescents

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), an estimated 52 million Americans use prescription drugs for non-medical reasons at least once in their life. Every day, approximately 44 Americans die from prescription painkiller overdoses. Thus, it is an alarming scenario with prescription painkillers causing more than 16,000 deaths and 475,000 emergency room visits annually. No wonder, the prescription drug abuse helpline numbers never stop ringing.

It is more terrifying when it comes to adolescents. Being young with impressionable minds, they are more susceptible to fall prey to prescription drug abuse. Seeking prescription drug addiction treatment help remains the only solution in such a situation.

According to the National Center for Mental Health Promotion and Youth Violence Prevention, one out of every five teens in the U.S. abuse prescription drugs to get high. Almost half of them who have abused prescription painkillers also report abusing two or more drugs, including marijuana. They are also likely to abuse alcohol. Children reportedly do not feel any guilt pangs, because the drugs aren’t illegal and are also not shamed because they are not abusing illicit drugs, just prescription medicines. Adolescents abusing prescription drugs without any sign of inhibition is a dangerous trend.

As per a study titled “Psychotropic Medication Use among Adolescents: United States, 2005-2010,” about 6.3 percent U.S. adolescents reported any type of psychotropic medication use in the past month, during the period 2005-2010. The study, conducted by Bruce S. Jonas, Sc.M., Ph.D., Qiuping Gu, M.D., Ph.D. and Juan R. Albertorio-Diaz, M.A., has summed the findings as below:

The highest abuse seen is of antidepressants (3.2 percent) and attention deficit hyperactive disorder (ADHD) drugs (3.2 percent). They are followed by antipsychotics (1 percent); anxiolytics, sedatives, and hypnotics (0.5 percent); and antimanics (0.2 percent).
Males (4.2 percent) are more likely to use ADHD drugs as compared to females (2.2 percent), and females (4.5%) are more likely than males (2 percent) to use antidepressants.
The use of psychotropic drug was higher among non-Hispanic white (8.2 percent) adolescents than non-Hispanic black (3.1 percent) and Mexican-American (2.9 percent) adolescents.
Approximately half of the U.S. adolescents using psychotropic drugs in the past month had seen a mental health professional in the past year (53.3 percent).
Adolescents and prescription drugs

According to a 2008 report of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), 64 percent of the youth aged 12 to 17 who have abused pain relievers said they got the medicines from friends or relatives, often without the other person’s knowledge. Very few of them said that they procured prescription medicines from the internet.

However, they engaged in online chat and gathered information about drugs and others’ experiences. Another potential place to obtain prescription drugs is their respective schools. Rampant exchange of medicines and trade flourish in the corridors.

Ways to check abuse

The study feels that prescription drug abuse in adolescents should be taken seriously like any other abuse. Parents and caregivers have a significant role to play in curbing this menace. Since a school is a fertile spot for procuring prescription drugs, authorities have a pivotal role in addressing it. Regular seminars and inviting guest speakers to talk on the dangers of this can help in reducing this threat.

Government agencies should also exert their influence and work towards eradicating abuse of prescription drugs. Introducing stringent laws, implementing reforms and educating the people at large will go a long way.

Even physicians should play their part. Keeping detailed records of patients, educating parents about any drugs prescribed to their children and enquiring about their patients’ past abuses will also help in preventing this malady.

Drug Abuse Addiction: A Misunderstood Problem

Too often people don’t truly comprehend the real reason why a person develops a drug abuse addiction or how drugs can alter their brain to stimulate compulsive drug abuse and addiction. They wrongly perceive this problem as something that is surely a social problem only and may discriminate those who abuse drugs as morally powerless. A persistent and general belief is that addicted individuals should be fully capable of just quitting drugs as long as they are willing to alter their attitude and behaviour. Again and again, what people often simply and underestimate is the complication of drug addiction. It is a serious disease that impacts the very brain itself and as a result, ceasing drug abuse and drug addiction is not plainly a matter of an individuals’ willpower. Through current scientific advances we are now able to understand much more in regards to how precisely drugs affect the brain. Furthermore, we now know that drug abuse addiction can be successfully treated to assist individuals’ in stopping the abuse of drugs and carry on their normal lives.

Drug abuse and addiction can be a huge burden on society. There have been approximate estimates of the overall costs of this issue in the USA alone, which includes health costs as well as losses in productivity, to surpass 500 billion dollars annually. As distressing as these figures are, they don’t adequately and fully convey the breadth of detrimental public health and safety implications, which involve domestic violence, school failure, family disruption, loss of employment, child abuse, and many other types of deviant crimes.

To truly understand what drug abuse and drug addiction is, we need to know that it is a continuous, relapsing brain disease that induces uncontrollable drug seeking and use and abuse in spite of harmful and damaging consequences to the abuser who is addicted and to all those who are close to them. Drug abuse and addiction is defined as a brain disease for the reason that this problem advances changes in the function and also the structure of the brain. Even though it is undeniable that for most addicts the initial decision to take drugs is purely voluntary, over the course of time the alterations in the brain, as a result of abusing drugs over and over again, can greatly affect an individual’s self control and capability to make logical decisions, while at the exact same moment send extreme impulses to take more the addictive substance.

It is these very extreme changes in the brain that makes it so difficult for an individual who is addicted to absolutely cease from abusing drugs. Fortunately, there are existing treatments that assist people to neutralize drug addiction’s strong damaging effects so that the individual can recapture some semblance of self control. Studies have shown that incorporating drug abuse addiction treatment medications along with behavioural therapy is one of the most successful ways for majority of patients. When a treatment method is customized to each patient’s patterns along with psychiatric aid can lead to long term continuous recovery and a life without the need for further intervention.

Very much like other chronic or relapsing diseases such as heart disease or diabetes, drug abuse addiction can be managed quite successfully. Additional, it’s not unusual for a drug abuse and addiction person to backslide and start abusing drugs again. We must be clear that relapse does not indicate failure, rather, it demonstrates that proper drug abuse and drug addiction treatment should be reintroduced, modified, or that other forms of drug abuse addiction treatment is required to help the individual retake self control and recover.

Prevent Teen Drug Abuse Using Drug Testing Kits at Home

Teen drug abuse became a serious health problem in United States. It is hurting the healthcare system, burdening the economy, and causing millions of deaths every year. Of the many causes that promote drug abuse among teens, lack of parental supervision is a major one. Teens should be guarded properly by their parents as they are still immature.

Since, early intervention leads to effective prevention of this unhealthy habit, parents should identify drug abusing habits in teens and take preventive measures. Parents can take help of home drug testing kits which are effective and easy to use.

In this article, we will discuss about teens and their vulnerability to drug abuse; how to identify teen drug abuse and how important are drug testing programs at home to prevent teen drug abuse.

Teens – vulnerable to drugs abuse: Many scientific studies have already proved that teenagers are more prone to risk taking and are vulnerable to drug abuse when compared to adults. This typical behavior of teens during adolescence is because of the major changes in parts of the brain that are responsible for functions such as self-control, judgment, planning, organization, and emotions. Since teen brains are not yet fully developed, they cannot take proper decisions and fall victims to unhealthy habits like drug and alcohol abuse.

Signs and symptoms of drug abuse: The primary step towards prevention of drug abuse in teens is to identify their unhealthy habits. Prominent changes, both in their behavior and in physical appearance can be noticed even at the early stages of abuse. Following are the warning signs:

Physical and emotional changes:
• Red eyes
• Finding difficulty to speak
• Sudden fall or rise in weight
• Lack of hygiene and showing less interest in personal grooming
• Aggression and arrogance
• Depression and irritation

Social and behavioral changes:
• Dissociation from old friends and acquiring new social group
• Sudden anger or depression
• Poor attendance and academics at school
• Spending time lonely
• Abnormal odor in breath or clothing
• Pipes, needles and other suspicious substances in their room

Importance of home drug test kits: The moment you see the signs that indicate drug abuse in your teen, it is the time to confirm drug abusing habits using reliable methods. They are useful devices for the parents to confirm these unhealthy habits in teens. They are simple, easy to use, provide instant and accurate results, cost-effective and above all ensure privacy. Some multi-panel drug testing kits can detect multiple drugs of abuse at a shot.

Best drug test methods to implement: When it comes to home drug testing, urine and saliva tests are considered to be the best methods. There are two other methods – blood and hair tests also, but they need special devices and expert supervision, hence are not recommended for home testing.

Urine test can detect the drugs in your teen’s system up to three days after use. If you believe that your teen has taken drugs during the last few days, then this method is effective in offering accurate results. However, it is necessary to check that your teen is not providing fake urine sample which can lead to false results.

Saliva drug testing is an ideal drug test if you suspect that your teen abused drugs on that particular day. These kits can detect drug use up to 48 hours.

Need for random drug testing: If you are conducting drug tests on your teens at regular intervals, following a regular pattern, your teen may notice the pattern and either try to manipulate the sample before the test or stop abusing drugs few days before the test. Hence, practicing random drug tests is always an ideal way to identify the drug use which effectively helps in detecting the drug abuse among your teens. Random testing makes teens say ‘NO’ to drugs as they know that you can conduct drug testing any time at home.

Home drug testing kits can be considered as effective solutions in controlling and preventing drug abuse in your teens. So, make sure that you have some of them at home to test your teen to help him stay away from drugs.

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