The Latest News from Our Field

'We had no idea that things were this bad.' I hear that so often from parents when they find out their teen has been struggling with a mental health disorder. As parents, we are certain we know our kids better than anyone else. But mental health and substance abuse problems can be confusing and hard to detect, explains Laurie Flynn, Executive Director, TeenScreen National Center for Mental Health Checkups at Columbia University.

Suicide attempts, in which drugs played a role, jumped 49 percent among women ages 50 and older from 2005 to 2009, according to a new federal report. The report, prepared by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, found that 16,757 women 50 and older had a drug-related suicide attempt in 2009, compared with 11,235 in 2005.

Smokers are 30 percent more likely to die from colon cancer and 50 percent more likely to die of any cause than people who don’t smoke, a new study suggests.

Laws regarding involuntary commitment for substance abuse vary widely among states, according to a study presented at the American Psychiatric Association meeting this week.

Smokers are four times as likely as nonsmokers to develop a form of eye disease called age-related macular degeneration that can lead to blindness, new research indicates.

Stimulant drugs designed to treat attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder are not as likely as prescription painkillers to be diverted for non-medical purposes, a survey of 10,000 adults, ages 18 to 49, finds. Almost 25 percent of those surveyed said they had used prescription opioids for non-medical purposes, compared with about 8 percent who said they used stimulant medications for non-medical reasons.

Some Illinois prison inmates have to wait years for substance abuse treatment because of the state’s growing prison population, according to a prison watchdog group.

Abuse of recreational designer drugs known as “bath salts” has hit Michigan hard, sending 65 people to emergency rooms over the past six months and resulting in at least one death, according to a report by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration has announced the availability of the 2011 Campaign for Social Inclusion Awards. These awards fund selected statewide peer-run organizations across the United States to promote social inclusion on state and local levels, and to counter the negative perceptions, attitudes and beliefs associated with mental health and/or substance use problems.

The number of older Americans who are seeking treatment for substance abuse is growing. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration reports that treatment admissions doubled in adults age 50 and over between 1992 and 2008, according to The Associated Press. Experts predict this trend will continue as baby boomers get older.

The Attorneys General of 39 states reached an agreement with the companies that own Circle K (Dairy Mart) and On The Run stores aimed at preventing tobacco sales to minors. The agreement increases training for store employees and will impose independent compliance checks for the companies’ 4,000 stores.

Synthetic marijuana known as Spice can cause long-lasting psychosis, according to a report at the American Psychiatric Association Annual Meeting. Doctors at the Naval Medical Center in San Diego reported that in 10 men hospitalized for psychosis caused by Spice, symptoms lasted for days or even months.

Doctors can help influence teens’ attitudes and knowledge about smoking, and can help convince those who’ve already started smoking to think about quitting, a new study suggests.

On July 1, the first group of medical residents will start training in 10 newly accredited addiction medicine residencies around the country. The programs, accredited by the American Board of Addiction Medicine (ABAM) Foundation, will signal a new era in addiction medicine, says ABAM Foundation President Kevin Kunz, MD.

Binge drinking appears to hamper young adults’ ability to perform simple language and memory tests, a new study shows. The research suggests that drinking large quantities of alcohol in a short period may have an effect on the region of the brain involved in learning.

Georgia has become the latest state to approve a prescription monitoring program designed to help stop the abuse of opioid painkillers.

People with a family history of a milder form of alcoholism show a greater response to alcohol, than people without this family history, a new study finds. This enhanced sensitivity to alcohol could increase the risk for developing alcoholism, the researchers say.

Smoking increases the risk of developing advanced kidney cancer, a new study suggests. Quitting smoking can reduce the risk, the researchers found.

Florida officials met with health care executives last week to discuss how to protect babies born to women addicted to prescription drugs. An estimated 1,300 babies were treated for drug withdrawal in Florida in 2010, a 30 percent jump from the previous year.

Women who screen positive for unhealthy substance use receive mammograms less frequently than women who screen negative, a new study finds. In addition, both men and women who screen positive for unhealthy substance use are less likely to receive flu shots than patients not engaging in unhealthy substance use.

A law restricting access to the cold medicine ingredient pseudoephedrine has helped in the fight against methamphetamine, according to Iowa officials. But meth producers are still finding ways around the law.

Selling malt liquor containing caffeine, ginseng or other stimulants would be illegal under a bill passed by the Texas House.

A type of smokeless tobacco popular in Sweden called snus is growing in popularity in the United States. While most recognize that it is a safer alternative to cigarettes or older forms of smokeless tobacco, others are concerned that it will attract young people, becoming a steppingstone to cigarettes, says a researcher who spoke this week at the Smokeless Tobacco Summit in Austin, TX.

Missouri’s General Assembly this week passed a bill that would require all work-eligible welfare recipients to undergo drug testing. Anyone testing positive would be barred from receiving benefits for three years.

The rate of misuse of prescription pain medications jumped 40 percent in New York City from 2002 to 2009, according to the city’s Health Department.