How are Chem-Sex Parties and Breaking Bad, the hit American TV drama related? Crystal meth is one of the key ingredients to the current rage of drug-fueled, gay sex parties, known as “Chem-sex Parties,” which are triggering health concerns in the UK. The European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) said the “chem-sex parties” have emerged with gay men injecting illicit, synthetic drugs before engaging in “risky sexual practices,” primarily in London. The parties can last from eight hours to three days. (The Huffington Post) Read more →
The dramatic rise in prescription painkiller abuse in recent years is nothing short of epidemic. And the CDC recently reported that many high-risk opioid users get their painkillers with legal prescriptions from their doctors. In observance of last week’s National Poison Prevention Week (March 16-22), the National Safety Council released a list of seven alarming facts about prescription painkillers that many people might not know, but should: Read more →
Recent research shows that not only are doctors abusing prescription drugs at about the same rate as the general population (as many as one out of every ten doctors is struggling with a substance abuse problem), but their reasons for abuse tend to be the same as well. What becomes tricky are the treatment options. What we are finding is that traditional treatment options are not always conducive to the needs of physicians.
A study back in October in the Journal of Addiction Medicine, found that doctors tended to abuse prescription drugs such as Percocet, Oxycontin, Vicodin, sedatives and stimulants more than alcohol or illicit drugs (albeit those substances are abused among physicians as well). And although some doctors abusing prescription drugs did so for recreational use or to get high, many turned to prescription drugs for the following reasons: Read more →
With prescription painkiller addictions and overdoses on the rise among veterans, is the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs over-prescribing veterans painkillers? According to the Center for Investigative Reporting (CIR), the number of opiates (such as hydrocodone, oxycodone, methadone and morphine) prescribed to veterans has risen by 270 percent in the past twelve years. This has left many worried that VA practices of prescribing veterans painkillers is not only ineffective but dangerous. Read more →
Paint thinner is one of the ingredients used in Krokodil
Recent reports say that the flesh-eating drug Krokodil, which has terrorized Russia for more than a decade, has made its way to the U.S. The first report of this intravenous drug was found in Arizona back in September. It has also been reported in Illinois and Utah. The drug, which can be deadly, literally eats the flesh from the inside out of the body.
“Krokodil,” which is Russian means “crocodile,” is a cheap heroin knockoff. It gets its name from the scaly gangrene skin that occurs at the injection site. Krokodil damages blood vessels and tissue so much so that a user’s muscles, tendons and bones cane become exposed. Here are some horrific images caused by the drug (warning graphic images). Read more →
We wrote about the disturbing trend of the drug Molly this past summer. And with the start of a new school year, we’ve already seen the alarming effect of a drug that is being hyped as “pure and innocent.” At the MTV Video Music Awards this year, former Disney star, Miley Cyrus, even sang about it while she danced on stage with giant stuffed animals. The darker side of this drug is the number of overdoses it’s caused in the past two months. Read more →
