STATISTICS & TRENDS

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Alcohol’s “New Normal”

Our world has changed in the last few years, and along with those changes, patterns of alcohol consumption have shifted. But that shift may not be the one you expect.

STATISTICS & TRENDS

One State’s Discovery Reveals the Demographic Hit Hardest by Opioid Addiction

A recent Massachusetts study sought to determine which demographics have been hit hardest by the opioid crisis. As it turns out, mainly working-class, blue-collar residents in construction, agriculture, forestry, fishing, hunting, and industrial jobs have...

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Washington State Takes Big Pharma to Trial

In a rare turn of events, Washington State has decided to move away from proposed settlements with pharma giants and instead take several corporations to trial for the role they played in creating the opioid epidemic.

STATISTICS & TRENDS

How Does Drug Use Effect Sleep?

For those who want to sleep better, the science is quite clear: It’s smart to avoid the use of illicit drugs or the misuse of prescription drugs.

STATISTICS & TRENDS

A First-Hand Account of The Empire of Pain

For anyone touched by America’s opioid epidemic and anyone who has followed the development of this crisis, as I have, Patrick Radden Keefe’s new book adds to our knowledge of the steps that must be taken to heal from our crisis of drugs abuse and...

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Criminal Acts: How Pharma Companies Pushed Drugs They Knew Were Addictive and Dangerous

The Sackler Family and Purdue Pharmaceuticals deny any responsibility for the role they played in creating the opioid addiction epidemic. And while the most recent litigation against Purdue/the Sackler family ended in immunity for them and an abdication...

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Athletes at Risk: Drug Use in Amateur, Elite and Professional Sports

We don’t usually hear about our sports heroes using drugs or drinking excessively until their careers founder or come crashing down. The lucky ones recover from addiction and often go on to work hard to save other people’s lives. The unluckiest ones...

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Federal Judge Overturns Sackler/Purdue Pharma Bid for Bankruptcy Protection

In an alarming development in the ongoing litigation between thousands of plaintiffs against Purdue Pharmaceuticals (and the Sackler family that owns it), a federal judge just overturned the Sackler bid for bankruptcy protection and immunity. What does...

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Teva Pharmaceuticals Found Guilty

In the slew of recent lawsuits against pharmaceutical companies, yet another loss for Big Pharma was announced on December 30th, 2021, in the case of New York State against Teva Pharmaceuticals.

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Pharma Companies Settle to Resolve Opioid Lawsuits

Several major pharma litigations are currently making their way through U.S. courts. One such case just came to a close, unfortunately releasing several pharma giants from all legal liability regarding their role in the devastating opioid epidemic.

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Why Has Binge Drinking in College Been Normalized?

Overindulging in alcohol in college has become so socially acceptable that it is almost seen as a right of passage into adulthood. The problem with normalizing binge drinking is that it doesn’t address the genuine dangers of overdrinking.

STATISTICS & TRENDS

The Western and Midwestern U.S. Hard Hit by Fentanyl Overdoses

For much of the 2010s, fentanyl addiction and overdoses surged in regional areas like the Northeast, Appalachia, and the Southeast. At the time, many experts believed fentanyl addiction and overdose would remain a localized crisis, not a national one....

STATISTICS & TRENDS

New Threat to Watch For: Unwashed Poppy Seed Consumption

Clinicians and families alike may not be aware of the risk posed by consumption of a readily available type of poppy seed. Despite this lack of awareness, this seed can result in addiction, overdose and death.

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Over 100,000 Lives Lost to Drugs; CDC Finalizes Overdose Fatalities for 2020

The United States just passed a grim milestone, the first time in recorded history when over 100,000 Americans died from drug overdoses in one year. It’s a painful wake-up call, and a call to action that something must be done about the drug addiction...

STATISTICS & TRENDS

New Developments in the Sackler Case Suggest More Needs to be Done to Hold Pharma Magnates Accountable

In the late-1990s and early-2000s, pharmaceutical manufacturers like Purdue Pharma aggressively marketed addictive drugs such as OxyContin, pushing doctors to prescribe them. Today, though it’s known that these companies helped create America’s opioid...

STATISTICS & TRENDS

The U.S. is Losing a City Every Year to Drug and Alcohol Addiction

It may seem unbelievable at first, but the title is no exaggeration. America’s addiction epidemic has become so widespread that the United States now loses the population equivalent of an entire city each year to fatal drug overdoses.

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Alcohol is Now Responsible For More Than 95,000 Deaths Per Year

Excessive alcohol use is responsible for more than 95,000 deaths in the United States each year, or 261 deaths per day.

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Drug Overdose Deaths Jumped Nearly 30 Percent During the Pandemic

Many public health experts believed that, partially because of the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, 2020 was going to be the worst year yet for drug overdoses. They were right, and final numbers for the death toll exceeded even the most gloomy predictions.

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Awareness of Alcohol Addiction Soars, But Treatment Does Not

Even though Americans are aware that alcohol abuse is a problem in the U.S., the treatment gap is wider than ever. Reporting suggests that the gap recently went from 10% of alcohol addicts receiving treatment down to just 6%. What must be done to address...

STATISTICS & TRENDS

A Look at College Campus Drinking and Drug Use

Every parent wants a safe and rewarding college experience for their children. But when alcohol misuse and drug abuse are ongoing problems on college campuses which are further exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, how can parents ensure their children’s...