The Latest News from Our Field

The U.S. Navy will begin conducting random blood-alcohol tests on sailors in the United States in February, the Associated Press reports.

Missouri’s drug courts have more than 12,000 graduates who have successfully completed treatment court programs, according to the state’s top judge. "Missouri has become a national leader in drug courts," Chief Justice Richard Teitleman said in an address to the state legislature this week.

A U.S. Appeals Court this week refused to overrule the Drug Enforcement Administration’s classification of marijuana as a dangerous drug with no accepted medical uses, the Los Angeles Times reports.

A proposal by the Drug Enforcement Administration to more tightly control prescriptions of drugs containing hydrocodone is prompting debate among doctors, according to NPR.

Almost half of Americans surveyed say they would support government regulation of nicotine levels in cigarettes, HealthDay reports.

Drinking alcohol may help a person fall asleep, and increase deep sleep during the first half of the night, but can disrupt sleep during the second half, a new study finds.

Prescription drug abuse is growing out-of-control, draining limited resources and devastating families. Karen Kelly of Operation Unite explains why the National Rx Drug Abuse Summit aims to “Make An Impact” in the fight against this national epidemic.

Having a parent or sibling who has been deployed in the military increases the risk of drug and alcohol use among middle and high school students, a new study finds.

British researchers say there appears to be a link between smoke-free laws and a drop in the number of children hospitalized for asthma attacks. Their study found a 12.3 percent decrease in hospital admissions for childhood asthma attacks in the first year after smoke-free laws were enacted in Britain.

Law enforcement officials in the Boston areas report spotting new synthetic drugs, whose makers are figuring out ways to get around a federal ban on the substances.

A new phone app shows the effect of drinking alcohol on a person’s facial appearance. The “Drinking Mirror” is designed to make people aware of the physical toll of heavy alcohol consumption.

Once the Affordable Care Act is fully implemented in 2014, access to effective health care services for addiction will improve dramatically, according to Faces & Voices of Recovery. In an issue brief, the advocacy group describes how the new legislation will make it possible for many in or seeking recovery to be included in the health care system for the first time.

Legalizing marijuana sends the wrong message to young people, R. Gil Kerlikowske, Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, said this week. “We are certainly not sending a very good message when we call it medicine and legalize it,” he told The Oregonian.

Scientists at the University of Pennsylvania say MRI scans may be able to predict which patients will succeed with certain addiction treatments, and which ones will relapse, according to the Philadelphia Daily News.

A new study suggests substance abuse impairs sexual performance in men, even after they stop using drugs or alcohol. Earlier studies suggested men spontaneously recover their normal sexual performance several weeks after they end substance abuse.

Three federal legislators have sent letters to 14 marketers of energy drinks, asking for information about the products’ ingredients and for studies showing their risks and benefits to youth, The New York Times reports.

The number of emergency room visits involving energy drinks doubled from 2007 to 2011, reaching more than 20,000, according to a new government report.

People who smoke more have a greater chance of developing more aggressive and deadly bladder cancer, compared with those who smoke less or who are nonsmokers, a new study suggests.

Prescription drug overdoses are the number one reason for emergency room visits in Los Angeles County, according to public health officials.

Bars and restaurants in Washington, D.C. will be able to serve liquor until 4 a.m., and can stay open 24 hours continuously until the day after the presidential inauguration, NBC Washington reports.

The New York Police Department has announced it will put decoy pill bottles with tracking devices on pharmacy shelves, in an effort to track stolen painkillers.

Doctors miss drinking problems in almost three-fourths of patients because they don’t conduct alcohol screening, a new study finds. Instead, many doctors rely on gut feelings about whether a patient is engaging in problem drinking.

States use little of the income they receive from tobacco taxes or legal settlements with cigarette manufacturers to pay for smoking prevention or cessation programs, the American Lung Association concludes in a new report.

Some young adults under age 21 are not happy with new laws in Colorado and Washington that allow the recreational use of marijuana only for those who are at least 21 years old, according to U.S. News.

Using the designer drugs known as “bath salts” is like playing Russian roulette with your brain, according to Michael H. Baumann, PhD, Chief of the Designer Drug Research Unit at NIDA’s Intramural Research Program.