Oye I. Owolewa wrote the article “what the district could do to help curb prescription-drug abuse” this overall is about cutting down drug addiction by having effective solutions to get rid of medications at home. The author makes a good point that “almost two-thirds of teenage prescription abusers get the medications from home or friends”. Proving that having a safe way to discard medications can lower the rate of abusers because they won't have easy access to their parents or friends medication if its removed out of the house once its no longer needed. The author is a pharmacist who is constantly asked about disposing of medications, and with patients who have pills leftover there is a risk of them being taken and abused. The author does…
5.3% to 55% of college students misuse prescription drugs. Over a lifetime, the misuse of Adderall, most commonly prescribed stimulant to treat Attention-Deficit Disorder, appear to increase as we reach higher grade levels. The abuse of these stimulants increases from a student’s first year of college to their senior year. 13.3% of freshman reported substance abuse and by their last year, 31% of students reported misuse. Substance abuse on college campuses is a rising issue, Matt Lamkin’s “A Ban on Brain-Boosting Drugs is not the Answer” provides solutions catered to a perfect world.…
Risk of overdose is high, due to its unpredictable pharmacokinetic properties, inadequate patient education, polysubstance abuse, and over prescribing by healthcare providers (Aschenbrenner,2009). The methadone problem is growing in the United States. In fact, methadone…
In “From Brain Gain: The Underground World of ‘Neuroenhancing’ Drugs,” Margaret Talbot speaks to the extent students will go in today’s schools to succeed in spite of their overscheduled lives. Talbot used an extended example of a college student who takes off-label Adderall to come to her conclusion that there is no valid point in banning the use of neuroenhancers because, “too many people are already taking them, and the users tend to… proceed with just enough caution to avoid getting into trouble” (par. 24). Authors of the academic article “Addicted to Adderall” recognize the same abundance of Adderall in colleges as Talbot. They claim Adderall as the most common drug among college students. When it comes to the dangers of off-label drug…
The reason for this research was to find out how widespread teen prescription drug abuse is in an Appalachian county in Tennessee. It also searched for risk and protective factors, such as friends ' use or parental disapproval, that could potentially predict NMUPD. Using the study results, the authors set out to provide prevention recommendations (Collins, Abadi, Johnson, Shambien, & Thompson, 2012). The results of the survey that was given to the adolescents in class were 35% of the teens reported NMUPD with pain medications being the most abused. The risk and protective factors that were found to predict non-medical use of prescription drugs in the teens were: friends ' use, perceived availability, perceived risk of use, parental disapproval, school commitment, and community norms against drug use (Collins, Abadi, Johnson, Shambien, & Thompson, 2012).…
It is also necessary for students to come from high school and enter college more prepared for the workload and extra curricular activities. High schools need to prepare their students for college in order to address these pressures properly and reduce the number of students that turn to misusing Adderall as a coping method (Varga, 309). Lastly, students should take drug abuse workshops about the effects of the drug and the legal aspects of Adderall. Many students are unaware of the legal consequences of sharing, stealing or selling Adderall and making them aware of these consequences may make distributors less likely to share their medications. (Varga, 310).…
One of the drugs or rather class of drugs I’d like to discuss are opioids. These drugs/medications which have the tendency to be highly abused, but because of their properties in treating pain, these drugs are widely utilized in modern medical practices. Since the body naturally produces pain killers which are trace amounts of opioid compounds, actual pain killers or opioids enhance these pain killing mechanisms, therefore creating a significant potential for abuse in patients. This is discussed in detail in substance use and abuse in module 4.5. For example heroin has been used and abused throughout history, heroin is a derivative of opium which naturally occurs in poppy plants and by extension trace amounts of heroin could be found in opiate…
Opioids and Incarceration Incarceration of individuals is rapidly rising and the “war on drugs” has targeted opioid addicted users with no other ways of treatment other than jail time. Opioids are widely used for people with legitimate problems and the easy accessibility is making it possible for people of all ages and race to get a hold of. The crisis of opioid epidemic is only getting bigger along with the jail population. Anything from Xanax to Codeine can be easily attainable for the purposes of getting high. Another that is illegal, is heroin.…
Drug abusers use various methods to avoid detection and obtain prescription painkillers for illegitimate uses. Many rogue physicians facilitate the drug abusers by illegally supplying the drugs. Other physicians do not have adequate training to recognize or address prescription drug abuse. Finally, pharmacists, the suppliers of most prescription painkillers, may be unable to detect potential drug abuse or, in the case of rogue pharmacists may promote it. State PDMPs intended to combat prescription drug abuse have made some limited progress but they do not, and cannot, live up to their potential for the numerous reasons outlined in this Article.…
When people think of drug abuse in America they usually think of a heroin addict stabbing a needle into their arm, but Americans often tend to overlook the opioid epidemic’s place in suburban atmospheres. St. Louis County ranks nearly four times the national average for heroin related deaths in the country, and at the center of this is Kirkwood. From the outside Kirkwood looks to be the perfectly stereotypical suburban neighborhood. However, this is not necessarily true. Kirkwood High School has received national media coverage due to multiple heroin related deaths in the high school since 2014.…
Many people use drugs just for the effects, others however, will take a drug to try and increase performance, apart of a cultural ritual, or because of those around them using. Many college students will start taking Adderall or Ritalin to try and increase performance or to stay awake long enough to finish all of their work. Many Native American tribes used drugs like alcohol and tobacco as apart of rituals. You then have people who are apart of a great ecosystem of drug user, dealer, and seller who may get wrapped into drugs because they are apart of that group. College is a time where people have the most amount of pressure for academic and social success.…
Drug abuse in America is at an all time high across the country. The effects of drug abuse on 18-35 year old male and females in America changes the way drug addicts see reality. Drug abuse can affect a person’s mental alertness, consciousness, cognitive and neurological functions, as well as lead to death, homelessness, loss of family and friends and even prison. Prescription drug overdoses constituted for more overdose deaths than heroin and cocaine combined, and as many, more emergency room visits. Most people start out with a legit medical issue that leads to a prescription for pain, cancer, and even stress.…
Substance misuse is the harmful use of substances for non-medical purposes. The term “substance misuse” usually refers to the usage of illegal drugs that can cause mind-altering affects to an individual’s brain and nervous system, changing their emotion or mental and physical state. Some can abuse legal substances such as tobacco, alcohol and caffeine in excessive amounts. The misuse of food can also affect your health therefore, a balanced diet should be maintained to give your body the nutrients it needs to perform physically and to fight disease. ("How Does Diet Impact Health?…
Sings of drug abuse in teenagers can easily be identity at home and school. The article “A Prescription for Danger: Prescription Drug Abuse in Teens” reports “Parents can look for include drops in their children’s grades at school, sudden behavior changes or shifts in the kinds of friends they hang out with” (A Prescription for Danger). The use and abuse of drugs are serious issues that parents should not ignore because it can lead to serious health conditions and even death. The article “RADARS: Teen prescription drug use and abuse update” also confirms that “The most common means of acquisition of these medications is securing them from friends, or family members” (RADARS: Teen prescription).…
Prescription drug abuse is becoming more and more widespread. Drug abuse plays a significant role in social problems. Violence, child abuse, stress, and intoxicated driving among many other severely affect society. Drug abuse can lead to crime, homelessness, job absences, or even death (MedlinePlus, n.d.). According to Phillips (2013), author of Prescription drug abuse: Problem, policies, and implications, "Prescription drug abuse has emerged as the nation 's fastest growing drug problem."…