The Latest News from Our Field

In an era when prescription drug abuse is on the rise, doctors still don’t have a good way to measure pain objectively, The Wall Street Journal reports.

A growing number of businesses are using sticks instead of carrots to encourage employees to stop smoking, in an effort to cut health insurance costs, Bloomberg Businessweek reports.

Some college students continue to drink heavily even when they experience harmful effects such as hangovers, fights and unwanted sexual situations, because they perceive the benefits of drinking to outweigh the negative, a new study suggests.

A legal, natural and addictive substance called kratom is becoming increasingly popular in South Florida, according to a news report.

Drivers high on marijuana represent an unrecognized crisis, experts tell the Los Angeles Times.

A new study finds that the smoking cessation drug varenicline (Chantix) increases the risk of a heart attack or stroke for smokers without a history of heart disease, compared with smokers who do not use the drug.

After new cigarette labels mandated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration that carry graphic images were unveiled recently, calls to a national smokers’ quit line jumped.

Burger King, Sonic and Starbucks are among the fast food chains experimenting with selling alcohol, according to USA Today.

A new study suggests that the more alcohol-related memory blackouts a college student has, the greater the risk he or she has of future accidental injuries related to drinking.

Text messages that urge smokers to quit can double smoking cessation rates, a new study suggests.

Fort Campbell is getting ready for new prescribing rules to take effect July 5 that are a result of Army-wide changes designed to cut down on prescription drug abuse.

The Oregon House passed a bill banning new hookah lounges this week. The measure now awaits Governor John Kitzhaber’s signature.

Health care professionals are not screening enough for teen substance abuse, according to a new report that finds nine out of 10 Americans who meet the medical criteria for addiction start using addictive substances before age 18.

A study that scanned the brains of binge drinkers ages 18 to 25 shows that regularly having many drinks in one sitting can affect an area of the brain related to paying attention, making decisions and controlling impulses.

Two brief talks with an adult about marijuana can reduce use of the drug by up to 20 percent in teens who are regular users, a new study suggests.

Police in Charlotte, NC report a rise in the use of “black tar” heroin, a highly addictive drug that appears to be especially popular among young users in affluent neighborhoods.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Center for Tobacco Products has announced it will review research on the impact of the use of menthol in cigarettes on the public health. The independent review will evaluate the impact of the cigarettes overall, as well as on children, African Americans, Hispanics, and other racial/ethnic minorities.

A Nike store in Boston has taken down a window display of T-shirts that said “Dope” and “Get High” after initially refusing a request to remove them by Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino.

A new government study finds that retailers sold tobacco to minors in the United States 9.3 percent of the time, the lowest rate in 14 years.

Detroit has become a major source of prescription painkillers that are sold in other states, according to authorities. Pills originating in Detroit are being sold in states as far away as Alabama and Maine.

Manufacturers of synthetic marijuana have changed the chemical formulation just enough to evade a ban by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, according to an article in the Sun-Sentinel. The new formulation is being sold in stores and on the Internet.

A growing number of pharmacies across the country are being hit by robberies as a result of the rise in addiction to prescription painkillers, the Associated Press reports.

Treatment admissions for prescription drug abuse and alcohol abuse problems are on the rise, according to a new report by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.

The manufacturer of Newport menthol cigarettes targeted its ads to California high school neighborhoods with a high percentage of African-American students, a new study finds.

Oklahoma is considering a law similar to one in Oregon that requires a prescription for the tablet form of pseudoephedrine, the key ingredient in methamphetamine. Since Oregon instituted the law in 2005, meth labs have almost disappeared from the state.