We curate a digest of the latest news in our field for advocates, policymakers, community coalitions and all who work toward shaping policies and practices to effectively prevent substance use and treat addiction. Sign up here to receive weekly updates straight to your inbox.
Menthol-cigarette smokers may be at higher risk of having a stroke than those who smoke other types of cigarettes, a new study suggests.
Some legitimate foreign online pharmacies may help U.S. consumers buy medicines they otherwise could not afford, a new economic analysis concludes.
In a small but increasing number of cases, lawyers defending soldiers are blaming the U.S. military’s heavy use of psychotropic drugs for their clients’ abnormal behavior and related health issues, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Young women ages 18 to 22 who drink may be at increased risk of developing proliferative benign breast disease, a noncancerous condition that can in some cases lead to cancer.
A law in Washington State requires doctors to refer patients taking high doses of opioids for evaluation by a pain specialist if their underlying condition does not improve. The law passed last year is aimed at reducing the epidemic of prescription drug abuse.
California’s prescription drug monitoring program is not effective in curbing prescription drug abuse, because enrollment in the program is optional, and funding for the program is drying up, according to The New York Times.
A new Virginia law will require thousands of first-time drunk-driving offenders to install blood alcohol testing devices in their cars that can lock the ignition. The measure is sparking debate in the state.
A program in Philadelphia that supplies the opioid overdose antidote naloxone to people addicted to drugs, their spouses and other laypeople, and trains them in how to use it, is saving lives, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer.
In the second half of a two-part column, Sullivan Smith, MD, Medical Director of the Cookeville (Tennessee) Regional Medical Center, talks to health care professionals about how to treat "bath salts" patients, and what you can do to help address the growing problem of abuse.
Law enforcement officials are reporting a rise in armed robberies of pharmacies, by drug dealers and people desperate for prescription painkillers, ABC News reports.
The Drug Enforcement Administration crackdown on improper sales of prescription painkillers, which has been focused on CVS, has now spread to Walgreens, according to The Wall Street Journal.
People who engage in hazardous and harmful drinking are more likely to reduce their consumption of alcohol for at least one year if they receive just seven minutes of counseling from an emergency room physician, a new study finds.
A World Trade Organization appeals court this week upheld an earlier decision that a U.S. ban on clove cigarettes discriminates against Indonesia. The ban was designed to prevent youth from smoking.
Sales of oxycodone and hydrocodone are sharply rising in areas of the United States where these prescription painkillers were not as popular in the past, according to an analysis by the Associated Press. The rise in sales is driven by an aging population with pain issues, as well as an increase in addiction, experts say.
Health officials of 135 nations provisionally agreed this week to a deal to fight tobacco smuggling.
The club drug ketamine, known as “special K,” may increase the risk of developing urinary tract symptoms, according to a new study.
Arizona Governor Jan Brewer signed into law this week a bill that bans medical marijuana on state university and community college campuses.
Cars and trucks one day may have built-in blood alcohol detectors, The Wall Street Journal reports. Research on the Driver Alcohol Detection System for Safety is progressing more quickly than expected, and could be available within eight to 10 years, experts say.
Underage female drinkers are now as likely to die in an alcohol-related car crash as their male counterparts, a new study suggests. In 1996, underage males had a higher risk of a fatal car crash than underage females. By 2007, the gender gap had closed.
Veterans living in state-run centers in Oklahoma are worried they may have to move out because they smoke. A new order signed by the governor bans the use of tobacco products on any properties owned, leased or contracted for use by the state.
A measure advancing in the New Jersey legislature would expand the number of criminal offenders who are eligible for court-supervised drug and alcohol treatment.
In the first half of a two-part column, Sullivan Smith, MD, Medical Director of the Cookeville (Tennessee) Regional Medical Center, discusses the basics of “bath salts” and "plant food," and what substance abuse professionals need to know about these popular synthetic drugs.
A survey of more than 10,000 U.S. teenagers found that by late adolescence, 78 percent had consumed alcohol, and about 15 percent met the criteria for alcohol abuse.
A bill recently introduced in the Senate aims to direct federal resources to prevent fetal alcohol spectrum disorders, and to provide services for those living with them, and their families.
A new study suggests that girls are more likely than boys to be affected by exposure to secondhand smoke.
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