April is Alcohol Awareness Month

Source: NCADI web site

To recognize the serious problem of alcohol abuse, April is designated “Alcohol Awareness Month.” April 8 marks the annual observance of National Alcohol Screening Day (NASD). At locations across the United States, people can be screened—anonymously—to see if their drinking habits may be risky.
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If you suspect that you might have a drinking problem, or you know someone who abuses alcohol, please contact SAMHSA’s National Clearinghouse for Alcohol and Drug Information (NCADI) at 1-800-729-6686 or find a screening site located near you.

Visit NCADI’s Alcohol Awareness page.
Visit the PIC homepage for suggested resources and links related to Alcohol Awareness Month.

Report: Schools Can’t, Shouldn’t Shoulder Prevention Burden

Source: Jointogether.org News Feature, 9/17/07
Most American kids receive some drug education in the classroom, but a new report contends that schools should not be relied upon to prevent early use of alcohol and other drugs and its consequences.

The report, “Prevention Education in America’s Schools: Findings and Recommendations from a Survey of Educators,” noted that 37 states require schools to teach students about the dangers of alcohol and other drugs. However, “Teachers don’t have the time, training or other resources needed to do the job effectively, regardless of what the state-mandated standards say,” according to the report by Join Together and Communitas Online.

For example, the report noted that 26 percent of educators who actively teach prevention in the classroom said they have had no training to do so.

Read the News article here.
Access the full report here.

First Time Users of Pain Relievers Continue to Surpass All Other Drugs; Number of New Ecstasy and Stimulant Users Increases

Source: CESARFax, 9/17/2007

More than 2.1 million persons ages 12 or older used prescription-type pain relievers for the first time in 2006,according to recently released data from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH). While the number of new users of pain relievers has been decreasing since 2003, it continues to be the drug category with the largest number of new initiates since surpassing marijuana in 2002. The number of first-time marijuana users has declined significantly, from nearly 3.0million in in 2000 to slightly more than 2.0 million in 2006. Other recent changes in the initiation of illicit drugs include increases in the number of first time ecstasy users (from 615,000 in 2005 to 860,000 in 2006) and in the number of first-time nonmedical users of prescription-type stimulants*(from 647,000 to 845,000). Previous research has found that changes in initiation levels “are often leading indicators of emerging patterns of substance use”(p. 49).

See Also:

• Youth Drug Use at a Five Year Low, Report Shows (ONDCP Press Release, 9/6/2007)
• Youth Drug Use Continues Downward Slide Older Adult Rates of Use Increase (SAMHSA Advisory 9/7/2007) *Provides a decent overview of findings.*
• To view or order a hard copy of the 2006 National Survey on Drug Use and Health go to http://ncadistore.samhsa.gov/catalog/productDetails.aspx?ProductID=17735
• Teens and Prescription Drugs: An Analysis of Recent Trends on the Emerging Drug Threat (ONDCP 2/2007)

NIAAA Identifies Five Subtypes of Alcohol Dependence

Source: JoinTogether.com News Summary, 6/29/07
For the first time, federal researchers have broken down the disease of alcoholism into five distinct subtypes, which experts say should help provide more targeted treatment for problem drinkers.

The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) reported June 28 that the five new subtypes include “Young Adult,” “Young Antisocial,” “Functional,” “Intermediate Familial,” and “Chronic Severe.”

Read the NIH News Release.

Sales of Home Drug-Test Kits Soar Despite Warnings from Experts

Source: JoinTogether News Summary, 5/15/07
The number of parents buying home drug-test kits has increased dramatically despite warnings from treatment professionals and government officials that home-testing adolescents is not a good idea, the Denver Post reported on May 14.
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“By the time a parent tests, it’s already far down the road,” said ONDCP Deputy Director for Demand Reduction Bertha Madras. “If they get a positive result, then what? Parents may or may not have the skill to proceed.”
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“Parents are motivated by the best of intentions,” said Dr. Sharon Levy, a childhood addiction specialist at Children’s Hospital in Boston. “They are told by marketers that this is a good thing to do. But drug testing is basically a threat. And while it might have some short-term behavioral changes, I don’t think it’s a good long-term prevention method.”
Read the American Academy of Pediatrics statement on drug testing.
Read 5/14/07 Denver Post article : “Drug-test kits a big hit with parents”

During Their Lifetime More Than 10 Percent Of Adults Abuse Or Become Dependent On Drugs

Source:  Medical News Today, 5/11/07
Approximately 10.3 percent of U.S. adults appear to have problems with drug use or abuse during their lives, including 2.6 percent who become drug dependent at some point, according to a report in the May issue of Archives of General Psychiatry, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
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Individuals who abused drugs began at an average age of 19.9, whereas those with drug dependence developed the condition at an average age of 21.7. About 8.1 percent of those who abused drugs and 37.9 percent of those who were dependent received treatment during their lives. “The adolescent onset of drug abuse and dependence revealed critical windows of opportunity for prevention efforts,” the authors write.
(Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2007;64:566-576)

“You’ve Got Drugs!” IV

Source: CASAColumbia.org: News Room: Press Releases, 5/16/2007

NEW CASA* WHITE PAPER FINDS 70 PERCENT RISE IN WEB SITES ADVERTISING, SELLING PRESCRIPTION OPIOIDS, STIMULANTS, DEPRESSANTS DRUGS AVAILABLE TO CHILDREN; PRESCRIPTION RARELY REQUIRED CALIFANO TO TESTIFY BEFORE SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE ON ROGUE ONLINE PHARMACIES

WASHINGTON, DC, May 16, 2007 – For three years straight the number of rogue Web sites selling controlled prescription drugs like OxyContin, Vicodin, Valium, and Ritalin has increased, according to a new White Paper released by The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) at Columbia University.

The White Paper, “You’ve Got Drugs!” IV: Prescription Drug Pushers on the Internet, to be released today at the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on “Rogue Online Pharmacies: The Growing Problem of Internet Drug Trafficking,” found a total of 581 Web sites advertising or selling controlled prescription drugs in 2007 compared to 342 sites in 2006. Sites advertising controlled prescription drugs increased by 135 percent, from 168 in 2006 to 394 in 2007. Sites selling these drugs increased by seven percent from 174 in 2006 to 187 in 2007. Of the 187 sites found selling controlled prescription drugs this year, only two were certified by the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy as Verified Internet Pharmacy Practice SitesTM .

Read the rest of the press release.
View or order the White Paper.

New Tool Created To Help Families In The Child Welfare System

Source: SAMHSA Bulletin, 5/10/2007

Screening and Assessment for Family Engagement, Retention, and Recovery (SAFERR), a new guidebook designed to help staff of public and private agencies respond to families in the child welfare system who are affected by substance use disorders, is now available through the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).

SAFERR is based on the premise that when parents misuse substances and mistreat their children, the best way to make sound decisions is to draw from the resources of three key systems: child welfare, alcohol and drugs and the courts.

Order a free copy of SAFERR from NCADI by clicking here.

SAMHSA Launches New Web Page for Veterans and Their Families

Source: SAMHSA Bulletin, 5/10/2007

A new section of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s Web site at http://www.samhsa.gov  has been launched for veterans and their families.  The Web site provides critical information on prevention, treatment and recovery support for mental and substance use disorders.

Publications, fact sheets, and links to relevant agencies are provided along with information on SAMHSA-funded programs, agency activities, and training and technical assistance opportunities.  Individuals seeking substance use and mental health services can easily find information about local programs by using SAMHSA’s treatment facility locator.

Also today, SAMHSA convened a meeting with the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Department of Defense and veterans service organizations to better understand the needs and to identify ways local community-based substance abuse and mental health service organizations can best be prepared to assist veterans and their families.  The discussion will help inform the development of guidance materials for states, local communities, and providers to ensure a coordinated approach to providing mental health and substance use services.

For more information, please visit Resources for Returning Veterans and Their Families at http://www.samhsa.gov/vets/ .

Study Finds Link Between Depression and First Use of Drugs or Alcohol

Source: SAMHSA Office of Applied Statistics Press Release, 5/3/2007
Youths who faced depression in the past year were twice as likely as those who did not have depression to take their first drink or use drugs for the first time, according to a new report by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).

The NSDUH Report: Depression and the Initiation of Alcohol and Other Drug Use among Youths Aged 12 to 17 showed that in 2005 2.2 million youths [8.8% of youths] experienced a major depressive episode in the past year. For these estimates from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), a major depressive episode is defined as a period of two weeks or longer during which there is depressed mood or loss of interest or pleasure and at least four other symptoms that reflect a change in functioning, such as problems with sleep, eating, energy, concentration and self-image.

Among youths who had not used alcohol before, 29.2 percent of those who faced depression took their first drink in the past year, while 14.5 percent of youths who did not have a major depressive episode took their first drink. And 16.1 percent of youths who faced depression and had not previously used illicit drugs began drug use; in contrast, 6.9 percent of youths who did not have a major depressive episode began drug use.