The Latest News from Our Field

Manufacturers of the synthetic version of marijuana known as “spice” are changing the recipe just enough to skirt state laws banning the substance, The Washington Post reports.

Programs that target multiple areas of young people’s lives, including family, peers, community and school, may help prevent drug use and risky sexual behavior, according to a new study.

The smoking cessation medication Chantix is being tested as a possible treatment for addiction to alcohol, cocaine and methamphetamine.

Clergy can, should, and must make a difference in the pain and confusion felt by so many of their congregants, but they must first understand the role that alcoholism and drug addiction play in the insidious social and spiritual erosion plaguing so many of their congregation’s families, says Sis Wegner of NACoA.

Four drug companies are developing a more powerful version of the painkiller hydrocodone. One group dedicated to fighting prescription drug abuse is concerned this new drug has a large potential for abuse.

Parents who allow their teens to have friends over to drink, thinking it’s a safe way to keep them off the roads, may be surprised to find they are subject to liability laws that make them vulnerable to lawsuits, fines and jail time.

People who inject methamphetamine are 80 percent more likely to attempt suicide compared with those who inject other drugs, a new study has found.

Men who are on methadone treatment are twice as likely as the general population to be involved in motor vehicle accidents, according to a new study from Norway.

Before voters cast their ballots to legalize marijuana, or their elected officials decide, think about what will happen to children if marijuana becomes accessible to adults, much like alcohol, advises National Families in Action's Sue Ruche.

A new study links smoking with a type of skin cancer called squamous cell carcinoma in women. The more a woman smokes, the greater her risk of developing the cancer.

The two biggest tobacco companies in the United States have agreed to pay $6.25 million to support the country’s largest online collection of tobacco industry documents.

Young adults who sent and received weekly text messages that tracked their alcohol consumption drank less after 12 weeks, according to a new study.

Substance abuse often plays a role in cases of child abuse or neglect in Kentucky, according to an investigation by the Lexington Herald-Leader.

A new report concludes the Food and Drug Administration needs more information about the health effects of “modified risk” tobacco products such as e-cigarettes or tobacco lozenges, before it allows tobacco companies to sell or advertise these products as being able to reduce the health risks of tobacco use.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced it will tell Medicare prescription drug plans to withhold payment when they detect signs of suspicious activity related to narcotics and painkillers. The move is aimed at reducing Medicare fraud, Reuters reports.

Government experts are urging people to learn the facts about drinking and driving, to prevent the surge of alcohol-related car accidents that occur every holiday season.

Ecstasy may produce long-lasting changes in brain chemistry, a new study suggests. The drug can cause a drop in the levels of the brain chemical serotonin for up to two years.

Marijuana use is gaining in popularity among teens, according to Monitoring the Future, an annual survey of eighth, 10th, and 12th-graders, The New York Times reports. The survey found one of every 15 high school seniors smokes marijuana on an almost daily basis.

The U.S. Department of Transportation has announced a nationwide crackdown on drunk driving this holiday season.

A new government program aims to protect young children from accidental drug overdoses. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced the “Up and Away and Out of Sight” program, to teach parents how to keep medications out of the hands of young children.

People who quit smoking report higher levels of health-related quality of life compared with people who continue to smoke, a new study shows. They also report fewer stressful situations, and more support by spouses or partners.

Frank Vocci, PhD, President of Friends Research Institute, describes advances in research for new medicines to treat cocaine dependence.

A growing number of parents are using at-home drug tests for their teens, even though some experts in adolescent drug use do not recommend them.

A family-centered prevention program can help deter substance use, conduct problems and depressive symptoms among rural African-American teens, a new study finds.

New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg is launching a task force to fight the growing prescription drug abuse epidemic in the city, after officials identified 21 pharmacies that account for about one-fourth of the city’s oxycodone Medicaid reimbursements.