STATISTICS & TRENDS

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Prevention Is The One Thing We Can Agree On—It's Still Not Happening

In my ongoing research, I came across Dr. Nora Volkow’s June 27, 2019 blog post at the National Institute on Drug Abuse. Dr. Volkow is the director of NIDA, which itself is a part of the National Institutes of Health.

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Are Young People Using Drugs More Often than They Used to?

Drug and alcohol misuse at any age carries with it a severe risk not only for the user but for those around them as well. And while drug and alcohol misuse can occur with anyone, at any time, and under just about any circumstances, this life-threatening...

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Addiction Statistics Today—Where Does the Drug Problem Stand Now?

One of the challenges that we face when addressing our country's drug problem is a lack of relevant and current data about the drug problem. It seems that every time we research the drug crisis, we find that the majority of published data on the subject...

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Heroin Overdoses on the Way Down in Some Areas, Band-Aid for the Real Problem

Heroin addiction. The term itself brings out feelings of discomfort, sadness, and heartache. It seems like everywhere we turn there is another story of an individual who died from a heroin overdose—a life lost, a family tormented.

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Multiple Cities Move to Decriminalize Psychedelic Mushrooms—Why It’s a Mistake

It’s no coincidence that the strides towards the legalization of psychedelics fit right into the footsteps left by recent efforts to legalize marijuana. It seems that our country is edging closer to drug legalization being more broadly accepted. But...

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Drug Court Vs. Treatment: How Drug Courts Can Help | Narconon

In a nation that struggles with a drug addiction epidemic, our society rapidly seeks solutions and methodology for reducing the drug problem.

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Deaths from Drugs, Alcohol, and Suicide at All-Time Highs

Dying is just a part of the life cycle. But the circumstances under which people die can be significant, especially when avoidable. Death rates from drugs, alcohol, and suicide are at all-time highs. These death rates are higher than they ever have been...

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Pharma Loses Major Lawsuit

Many of us silently cheer when we hear about a mega-corporation losing a lawsuit against an underdog. This particular aspect of human nature is evidenced in Hollywood films, music, books, pop culture, and bedtime stories.

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Addiction in the World

When we examine drug and alcohol addiction as a severe humanitarian crisis, the first place we’re going to look is within our own families. We’ll check close to home, as this is the area that impacts our lives the most.

STATISTICS & TRENDS

An Overview of Nations, Looking at the Prescription Drug Problem on a Global Scale

Drug addiction in the United States is an expanding problem. While we might not want to admit it, much of what created the addiction epidemic that we face today was the rapid expansion of the pharmaceutical industry, the lack of regulation in that industry,...

STATISTICS & TRENDS

The Connection between Binge Drinking and Opioid Use

In a concerning research paper published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, it was found that more than half of the 4.2 million people in the United States who misused prescription opioids between 2012 and 2014 also struggled with binge...

STATISTICS & TRENDS

We are Polluting Our Waterways with Drugs

Can you imagine drug use becoming so prolific, so frequent, so regular and mainstream that our waterways would become contaminated with drug residues? It’s almost unfathomable to imagine this as a true fact, but news stories, research papers, and opinion...

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Excessive Dental Opioid Prescribing an Anomaly in the U.S.

It is safe to say that treating oral pain problems is something that dentists often have to do. But how they go about treating such symptoms is another matter entirely.

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Slow Progress in Fighting The Addiction Epidemic

After working with hundreds of people who struggled with addiction over the last eight years, I’ve often wondered if our country’s drug problem has an end in sight. I’ve seen addiction in my fellow man in one form or another all my life.

STATISTICS & TRENDS

The Connection between the FDA, Pharmaceutical Companies, and Addiction

One of the most common questions I hear regarding addiction is, “How did the addiction epidemic get so bad?” And I can see why people ask this.

STATISTICS & TRENDS

A Planet Drowning in Alcohol

We might not think of alcohol when we think of the world’s most addictive or harmful drug, but alcohol is up there, completely dwarfing narcotic drugs and mind-altering substances. Alcohol is a drug, in every sense of the word, and just because it is...

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Alcohol Misuse in Rural Communities—Why Drinking Ends Up Being a “Way of Life” in the Country

According to the Treatment Episode Data Set Report (a research project done by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration), about 50 percent of treatment center admissions in rural America are for alcohol.

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Opioid Prescribing to Young People Still Ongoing

For years, finding data on young adult and adolescent opioid prescribing was more akin to a deep sea treasure hunt than a cursory scan of the internet. There just wasn’t a lot of information out there. But now that’s changing. People are becoming more...

STATISTICS & TRENDS

How Might Doctors Refocus Post-Operation Opioid Prescribing?

Opioid addiction is the most discussed, most concerning, and most lethal drug addiction problem in the United States today. News of opioid dependence hits media headlines weekly. It is a national public health emergency that threatens the very viability...

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Decriminalization, Legalization, or Diversion—What’s the Right Solution?

As our great nation continues to struggle with a sweeping drug problem, the American people have attempted to create new ways and means of addressing that problem. Not all such approaches have been successful or sensible.