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prevention news!
News of Hope email. |
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| Welcome
to our July, 2005 "News of
Hope" newsletter!
Summertime
is rapidly refocusing towards
the new school year...how fast
time flies! The time to focus
on the well-being of our children,
families and friends is, however,
for always. Each and every day,
we add to the welfare of those
we love when we open our minds
to a new bit of hopeful wisdom
and insight. Armed with knowledge
and a regular dose of compassion,
patience, kindness and courtesy,
we build a hopeful, positive
attitude into our own lives
and those around us.
So, this
month we share some brief drug
and alcohol prevention news
to add to your arsenal of tools.
Drugs of choice come and go
with availability, peer exposure,
and media. Now is the time to
be aware of meth amphetamines.
They are on the rise, easy to
make, and particuarly popular
in rural communities where manufacturing
can be done in remote areas
with less detection.
Be
heartened by the articles below
on progress in medical research
in areas of alcoholism and addiction
and social progress as USC bans
alcohol at football games. Though
personally an avid proponent
of the 12-step programs for
addressing the emotional and
spiritual as well as physical
aspects of addiction, we are
well-served to have the support
and tools of the medical and
collegiate communities addressing
the under-discussed epidemic
of alcoholism in our world today.
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| CONTENTS |
| 1. |
Drug
Companies Try to Keep DXM
(Meth Derivative) on Shelves |
| 2. |
Too
Many Use Alcohol to Treat
Insomnia |
| 3. |
Slow-Release
Fentanyl Patches Being Abused |
| 4. |
Topiramate
Shows Promise in Addiction
Fight |
| 5. |
USC
Bans Alcohol at Football
Games! |
|
| (Photos
above are from the LEGACY booth
at the American School Counselor
Association Conference in Orlando,
Florida! What a delight to meet
these dedicated professionals
who I've so often worked with
at middle schools and high schools,
giving their hearts and souls
to the well-being of teens. In
case you're wondering, the man
in the photo is my husband and
partner, Ken Vanderlip, Ph.D.
- The roses were to celebrate
our 21st wedding anniversary while
at ASCA!) |
| For
MORE prevention info, check out
past newsletters on our website |
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| Drug
Companies Try to Keep DXM on Shelves |
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Pharmaceutical
firms have given in to public
and government pressure and
endorsed putting drugs containing
pseudoephedrine (PSE) behind
pharmacy counters to prevent
their diversion to methamphetamine
production. But the industry
is fighting proposals to put
similar restrictions on medications
containing dextromethorphan
(DXM), a cough medicine frequently
abused by teens. |
|
Drug companies are working
with states to limit youth access
to drugs like Wyeth's Robitussin,
Johnson & Johnson's Tylenol
Cold & Flu and Schering-Plough
Corps.'s Cordicin HBP, but want
to see the drugs remain on store
shelves.
The industry makes about $8585
million annually from sales
of products containing DXM.
The Consumer Healthcare Products
Association is trying to protect
the market segment by supporting
bills in six states (California,
New York, Connecticut, New Jersey,
Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island)
that would prohibit sales of
DXM drugs to minors but still
allow them to be sold to adults
without the involvement of a
pharmacist. The group is also
working with Congressional lawmakers
to sponsor a federal bill to
outlaw bulk sales of DXM to
the public, and is funding a
Partnership for a Drug-Free
America public education campaign.
The Partnership estimates that
9 percent of teens have abused
cough medicines.
CVS already bans sales of DXM
drugs to minors, while Walgreens
bars purchases of more than
three packages of Coricidin
HBP, which contains high levels
of DXM.
-from the Wall Street
Journal |
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Too
Many Use Alcohol to Treat Insomnia
A government
expert panel on insomnia recently
concluded that too many Americans
are using alcohol, antihistamines,
and other drugs to self-medicate
their insomnia problems.
Around one
in three Americans has trouble
sleeping, and approximately
10 percent can be diagnosed
as insomniacs. But researchers
know little about the causes
of insomnia or how to prevent
sleeplessness, according to
experts from the National Institution
of Health.
|
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Cognitive and behavioral therapy
can cure some insomnia, as can
newer sleeping aids like Sonata,
Ambien, and Lunesta, the panel
said. But too many people rely
on unproved self-medications,
from alcohol to supplements
like melatonin and velarian,
experts agreed, calling for
more research to develop better
treatments.
-from the Chicago Sun-Time |
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| Slow-Release
Fentanyl Patches Being Abused |
 |
Transdermal
patches containing a time-released
does of the painkiller fentatly
are increasingly being used recreationally,
with a corresponding rise in overdoses.
University
of Florida researchers said
the the fentanyl patches, usually
prescribed to treat chronic
or postoperative pain, can be
deadly. "Because the patch
is a sustained-release form
of the drug, if one withdraws
the 72 hours' worth of drug
and uses it in a form that it
wasn't designed to be used for,
then it can rapidly result in
death," said lead researcher
Bruce Goldberger, Ph.D.
|
Florida
officials say that 115 overdose
deaths statewide were attributed
to the fentanyl patch last year;
victims sometimes removed the
entire three-day supple of the
drug from the patch and then
injected, ingested, or smoked
it; others had used multiple
patches at once to get high.
"We
have seen an increased use and
abuse of the patch form of fentanyl
for the past five years or so,"
Goldberger said. "Based
on our study we're recommending
that physicians better educate
their patients on the use of
the patch, and, as a result,
we might see lower numbers in
fentanyl-related deaths in the
state of Florida.
-from Medical
Research News |
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Topiramate
Shows Promise in Addiction Fight
Topiramate, a drug used to treat
epilepsy under the brand name
Topamax, is being studied as a
possible treatment for alcoholism,
nicotine addiction, gambling addiction,
and even some eating disorders.
Doctors are already prescribing
the drug off-label to treat
addiction, although topiramate
has not been officially approved
by the FDA for this purpose.
"My patients tell me that
they no longer have the fear
that comes with craving,"
said Fairbanks, Alaska internist
Linda Garcia, who has prescribed
the dug to dozens of alcoholics.
The drug seems to reduce cravings
by inhibiting the release of
the pleasure-related neurotransmitter
glutamate and promoting the
release of the glutamine inhibitor
GABA, another neurotrasmitter.
Small studies of hard core
drinkers suggest that the drug
helps patients stay sober or
cut back on their consumption.
A larger project on using topiramate
to treat addiction is now under
way.
-from Newsweek
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USC
BANS ALCOHOL AT FOOTBALL GAMES
Alcohol
will no longer be served to fans
at University of Southern California
home games held at the Los Angeles
Coliseum, the Associated Press
reported June 1. Letters
from fans complaining about
drunken behavior at past USC
games prompted the decision,
said school president Steve
Sample. "Longtime attendees
at our games have witnessed
an escalation in the rude behavior
of fans, rudeness that is almost
always exacerbated by alcohol
consumption," said Sample
in a letter to season ticket
holders. "I recognize that
this new policy represents a
big change from what we're accustomed
to, but most of if not all of
our peers have made this change,
and we can too."
All other
teams in the Pac-10 Conference
already ban alcohol at football
games. Sample also promised
to toss out any fans who possess
alcohol, get drunk, or act unruly
at future USC games. Fans who
are ejected also will lose the
right to buy tickets for other
games.
An Article
from JoinTogether - advancing
effective alcohol and drug policy,
prevention and treatment |
| Check
out Join Together from our Resources
of Hope |
|
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|
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52
WAYS TO PROTECT YOUR TEEN - New
Book HAS ARRIVED!
"Excellent
reading for adults and teenagers,
" says Dr. Art Ulene, Former
NBC Today Medical Expert. Furthermore,
says, Art, "52 Ways is trustworthy
information, sound advice, and
an excellent resource that parents
and teenagers can use to make
a great success ou of this challenging
stage of life." SELLING
LIKE HOT CAKES to Grandparents,
Parents, Counselors, Educators
and Therapists!
Concerned
about the well-being of a teen?
ORDER YOUR COPIES NOW!
Relief is just a read away!
|
| ORDER
YOUR COPY AND ONE FOR A FRIEND:
52 Ways to Protect Your Teen |
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BOOK
A LEGACY OF HOPE PROGRAM FOR YOUR
EVENT, COMMUNITY OR SCHOOL
If
you would like to know more about
how LEGACY OF HOPE impacts positive
change in teens and adults, please
contact us with the link below.
Also,
please forward this newsletter
to friends, colleagues, parents,
and others who might find this
information useful. Help us
carry our message of hope and
healing. |
| If
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subject subscribe. |
| CONTACT
SUSIE NOW!! |
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"No
man is free who is not master
of himself."
- Epictetus Wishing
you well,
All of us at LEGACY
Susie Vanderlip - Ken Vanderlip
- Veronica Garcia
800-707-
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