Examining the Painkiller Overdose Epidemic through Historical Perspectives
Introduction:
Prescription drugs, most notably painkillers, have been prevalent in the 21st century among high-schoolers. According to a 2005 study, 4.4 million teenagers (aged 12 to 17) in the US admitted to taking prescription painkillers, and 2.3 million took a prescription stimulant such as Ritalin. So why is there an increase in the usage of painkillers, specifically among high-school students in southern California? Many feel painkillers are beneficial to high-schoolers to relieve pain from a physical activity such as sports. However, some take painkillers as a cheap alternative to illegal-street drugs. Nevertheless, it could also be taken to cope with depression …show more content…
A survey titled “Music, Substance Use, and Aggression” conducted in 2006 where 1,200 community college students aged 15-25 took part in, answered questions about their “music listening habits”. They found that “substance use and aggressive behaviors among young people were significantly associated to certain genres of popular music” which was mainly focused on rap. A clear example is in the song “I’m On Everything” by Bad Meets Evil, in the song Eminem raps the lines “Painkillers, I call 'em cane pillars, cause to hold me up when I take 'em, I need a cane and pillars, I'm on everything”. In this line, cane and pillars have a double meaning. One, both a cane and pillars are used for support. Secondly, cane and pillars mean cocaine and pills. Summing it all up, Eminem uses cocaine and pills to hold himself up. In an additional study it had examined rap music from at least 93 popular rap songs nominated by adolescents and found that, “illicit drugs were mentioned in 63% of rap songs versus 10% of lyrics in the other categories”. Nevertheless, from a scientific viewpoint, it does not mean that teens should stop listening to rap music or watch advertisements. But however, they should be cautious when doing so and see if they are physiologically able to handle these forms of …show more content…
Proposed guidelines from the CDC have advised doctors to prescribe “the lowest dose for the shortest amount of time” but gave an exception for cancer patients or patients on life-care. Thomas Frieden, the director of the CDC, has claimed that “about 40 Americans die each day from overdosing on prescription painkillers” and that “we must act now”. The CDC is taking action. As of 2014, prescription drugs killed more people than any other year in history and 1000 of those cases included the use of opioids. However, drafts of these guidelines from the CDC have received backlash as it limits the amount of money pharmaceutical companies can make. CDC had to attend public hearings before these guidelines could be issued. As of 2017, these guidelines are now in effect as now the CDC hopes these measures could reduce the amount of deaths among different demographics. These proposed measures will reduce the amount of painkillers taken by high-schoolers each year, as it is now being heavily reduced to certain people with life-threatening
Introduction:
Prescription drugs, most notably painkillers, have been prevalent in the 21st century among high-schoolers. According to a 2005 study, 4.4 million teenagers (aged 12 to 17) in the US admitted to taking prescription painkillers, and 2.3 million took a prescription stimulant such as Ritalin. So why is there an increase in the usage of painkillers, specifically among high-school students in southern California? Many feel painkillers are beneficial to high-schoolers to relieve pain from a physical activity such as sports. However, some take painkillers as a cheap alternative to illegal-street drugs. Nevertheless, it could also be taken to cope with depression …show more content…
A survey titled “Music, Substance Use, and Aggression” conducted in 2006 where 1,200 community college students aged 15-25 took part in, answered questions about their “music listening habits”. They found that “substance use and aggressive behaviors among young people were significantly associated to certain genres of popular music” which was mainly focused on rap. A clear example is in the song “I’m On Everything” by Bad Meets Evil, in the song Eminem raps the lines “Painkillers, I call 'em cane pillars, cause to hold me up when I take 'em, I need a cane and pillars, I'm on everything”. In this line, cane and pillars have a double meaning. One, both a cane and pillars are used for support. Secondly, cane and pillars mean cocaine and pills. Summing it all up, Eminem uses cocaine and pills to hold himself up. In an additional study it had examined rap music from at least 93 popular rap songs nominated by adolescents and found that, “illicit drugs were mentioned in 63% of rap songs versus 10% of lyrics in the other categories”. Nevertheless, from a scientific viewpoint, it does not mean that teens should stop listening to rap music or watch advertisements. But however, they should be cautious when doing so and see if they are physiologically able to handle these forms of …show more content…
Proposed guidelines from the CDC have advised doctors to prescribe “the lowest dose for the shortest amount of time” but gave an exception for cancer patients or patients on life-care. Thomas Frieden, the director of the CDC, has claimed that “about 40 Americans die each day from overdosing on prescription painkillers” and that “we must act now”. The CDC is taking action. As of 2014, prescription drugs killed more people than any other year in history and 1000 of those cases included the use of opioids. However, drafts of these guidelines from the CDC have received backlash as it limits the amount of money pharmaceutical companies can make. CDC had to attend public hearings before these guidelines could be issued. As of 2017, these guidelines are now in effect as now the CDC hopes these measures could reduce the amount of deaths among different demographics. These proposed measures will reduce the amount of painkillers taken by high-schoolers each year, as it is now being heavily reduced to certain people with life-threatening