The Drug Update

Over the past 30 years, many studies have been done that conclude that moderate drinking may be healthier for the heart than complete abstinence. However, according to researchers at the University of California at San Francisco say that most of these studies are flawed. In all but seven of the fifty-four studies the group researched, former drinkers were lumped into the same group as non-drinkers. But, since many of the former drinkers gave up drinking for health reasons, the coronary health of the non-drinking group was significantly raised, making the moderate drinkers to appear more healthy.

Posted by Matt Nazareth at 04:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

A study of 221 couples who underwent in vitro fertilization found that marijuana smoked by either the man or the woman adversely affected the likelihood of success. For men or women that had smoked, there was an average of one less embryo that could be transferred, as well as less eggs retrievable. The study also showed a correlation between smoking and lower birth weights, whether the man or the woman smoked.

Posted by Matt Nazareth at 03:56 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The Department of Education agreed to settle with Students for a Sensible Drug Policy after they filed a lawsuit to obtain information for free. The Dept. of Education wanted the SSDP to pay a $4,000 fee to get information on state-by-state numbers of students who had been denied financial aid based on previous drug convictions. Under the Freedom of Information Act, the fee is meant to be used when a group is obtaining information for commercial purposes, not for educational or public interest causes.

Posted by Matt Nazareth at 05:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

A study done in Australia found that smoking increased the risk of impotence. Men who smoked more than a pack per day were 39% more likely than non-smokers to have problems getting or maintaining an erection. Smokers that smoked less than a pack per day were about 24% more likely to have erectile problems.

Posted by Matt Nazareth at 03:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted 4-1 to regulate medical marijuana dispensaries, in effect lifting the county's ban. The Board's decision to regulate is specific to the unicorporated areas of the county (the areas that fall only under only county laws, not city or local ordinances).

Posted by Matt Nazareth at 03:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

A study found that daily marijuana users had decreased levels of depression. The effect was highest in recreational users and less noticable in medicinal users, although the study noted that medicinal users were more likely to have other conditions that increased their susceptibility to depression.

Posted by Daniel Walter at 05:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center found a link between rats' level of cocaine addiction and their responses to different stimuli. Rats were allowed to give themselves cocaine with the pull of a lever. Once addicted, and then put through withdrawal, the rats were then given different drugs. One drug was given that reduces cravings along with a small amount of cocaine. In another trial, the rats were given a drug that increases cravings. The more addicted rats were much more likely to give themselves more cocaine in both trials, showing differing brain responses to the same stimuli, based on level of addiction.

Posted by Matt Nazareth at 04:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Research indicates that tobacco use increases risk of bladder cancer by more than 400 percent. Method of tobacco use (cigarettes, cigars, chewed) doesn't make a difference, because once tobacco enters the body, some of its carcinogenic waste products are excreted through the bladder.

Posted by Matt Nazareth at 04:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Researchers funded by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism found that a genetic disposition towards nicotine and alcohol may be linked. By breeding two strains of rats, one that liked to drink a lot and one that didn't, researchers studied their nicotine habits. By training the rats to push a lever to give themselves nicotine, they found that the rats predisposed to like alchol gave themselves about twice as much nicotine as the other rats. Because the rats had not been given alcohol, it isn't that actually drinking affected the rats' affection for nicotine, only the genes that coded for alcohol affinity. The two groups didn't show a difference in preference to cocaine, showing that the two groups didn't differ in a more general reward dispostion.

Posted by Matt Nazareth at 04:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) commissioned county workers from Fairfax County to collect sewage water earlier this month. The purpose? To test the water for levels of a urinary waste product of cocaine, benzoylecgonine. By testing the levels, they hope to be able to extrapolate the amount of cocaine used in the area, and from there the number of cocaine users. The ONDCP hopes that this will provide more accurate numbers than surveys, which rely on the honesty of participants. The same method was used last year in Italy, and implied about twice as many users as had been previously thought.

Posted by Matt Nazareth at 12:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

The ACLU filed a lawsuit that challenges the Constitutionality of a federal law that prohibits college students with drug convictions from receiving financial aid. The main basis of the suit claims that the law is in violation of the double jeopardy clause of the Fifth Amendment since students have been punished already by the convicting court. The other complaint is that the rich are insulated from the law since they don't need the financial aid in the first place.

Posted by Matt Nazareth at 02:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

An article exmaines the efficacy of random drug testing in reducing usage in light of two major studies. Random drug testing has become a hot topic as the government has asked for a doubling of the 2006 budget for such tests.

Posted by Daniel Walter at 09:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The Drug Abuse Warning Network (DAWN) reported on the disposition of emergency room visits for drug-related suicide attempts. In 2004, there were 15,000 visits for those aged 12-17, with three fourths of these visits serious enough to merit further treatment. Half the suicide attempts included pain medications, while another 40% involved antidepressants or other psychotherapeutic medications.

Posted by Daniel Walter at 09:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

March 20th's CESAR Fax reports on statistics that show young females leading the way in initiating drug use. 1.5 million females began using alcohol in 2004, compared with 1.2 million males, and there are similar differences for cigarettes and marijuana usage.

Posted by Daniel Walter at 09:38 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

According to a national survey in Britain, a quarter of British secondary school students have drank alcohol in the past week and a fifth have tried drugs in the past year. 10% of the 9000 11-15 year-olds surveyed said that they smoke at least one cigarette each week. The survey shows that drug usage has remained constant in the past five years, despite efforts to fight such abuse, although one government spokesman says that the survey shows decreasing numbers of alcohol users.

Posted by Daniel Walter at 09:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

California Attorney General Bill Lockyer is asking for San Diego's lawsuit against the California Compassionate Use Act to be thrown out. Lockyer's justification for throwing out the suit is that "courts can only hear cases that involve real factual disputes between opposing parties, and because there is no actual dispute here, such a request for an advisory opinion requires dismissal of the charges..."

Posted by Matt Nazareth at 10:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

An FDA advisory panel rejected calls to add warnings regarding the cardiovascular and psychiatric risks of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder drugs to their labels. Although the FDA does not have to follow the panel's decision, it usually does. In February, a different FDA advisory panel strongly recommended the addition of such a warning to ADHD drug labels.

Posted by Daniel Walter at 08:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The New Zealand legislature lowered the drinking age from 20 to 18 in 1999. A study of statistics found that this change could be responsible for an increase in the number of accidents and injuries among 15-17 year-olds and 18-19 year-olds. 15-17 year-old males saw a 14% increase, while females in the same group experienced a 24% increase. In the 18-19 age group, males had a 12% increase while females saw a 51% increase.

Posted by Daniel Walter at 11:50 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

A Dartmouth University study found that middle school students who own alcohol-branded items were more likely to initiate alcohol use than those who did not own such items. The study's sample pool included 2000 10-14 year-old middle school students.

Posted by Daniel Walter at 11:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

A study released on the characteristics of initiates to inhalants reveals that kids in families 200% above the poverty line or more accounted for two thirds of the new initiates. Reports on the survey have also stated that whites are more likely than others to try inhalants, based on the fact that 70.1% of the initiates were white. However, the US is about 75% white, which means whites may actually be underrepresented in the new initiates to inhalants.

Posted by Matt Nazareth at 04:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Though advocacy groups like Drug Policy Alliance have been critical of too much supply-side funding at the expense of demand-side funding in the drug war, with the release of the 2006 National Drug Control Strategy, even law enforcement agencies have criticized the budget. The National Narcotics Officers Associations Coalition (NNOAC) has been critical of the White House's Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) for being denied access to policy decisions. Specifically, NNOAC criticized the lack of leadership in the growing meth problem, the budget cuts to the Byrne program, and to the proposed relocation of the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) program which could change its focus.

Posted by Matt Nazareth at 04:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

A reader has pointed out this Washington Post article that highlights some issues in the selection of Zogby's polling pool for its marijuana legalization survey, which had found considerable support for the regulation of marijuana in the same way that alcohol is regulated. When Zogby found that a disproportionate number of conservatives were signing up for his polls, he looked towards the pro-legalization Marijuana Policy Project for more survey correspondents, and in return placed questions about marijuana legalization on the polling's company's national surveys.

Posted by Daniel Walter at 03:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

NPR held a discussion today regarding the most potent naturally occuring hallucinogen, salvia. Many first time salvia users experiences are too intense, leading them to never try the drug again. Among other things, there is consideration of the psychoactive's potential to treat stimulant abuse.

Posted by Daniel Walter at 03:31 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The White House is urging more high school districts to implement mandatory random drug testing for students who participate in any voluntary after school activities. Since such testing was ruled legal by the Supreme Court in 2002, $8 million in federal aid has been given to schools to help pay for random testing. The White House hopes to spend $15 million in the next fiscal year to help more schools enact testing programs. The studies about the effectiveness of these programs are mixed, with some showing a decline in testing schools and some showing equal levels of drug use between schools that do and do not test.

Posted by Matt Nazareth at 04:47 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The Drug Policy Alliance released a report in which Prop 36, California's drug sentencing reform law, is examined for its effectiveness. Prop 36 allows for first- and second-time drug possession convictions to be sentenced with treatment, rather than incarceration. The DPA announces that "Prop. 36 has become the most significant piece of sentencing reform – in terms of the number of people diverted from prison and dollars saved – since the repeal of alcohol Prohibition in 1933." Within the first four years after the bill passed, more than 70,000 people entered treatment for the first time. The legislation also called for an independent research team at UCLA to release reports about the effectiveness of the policy--one of which can be found here.

Posted by Matt Nazareth at 01:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

Yesterday, we reported on a warning issued by the ONDCP Drug Czar regarding high schoolers, drug usage and spring break. Well, it turns out that statistics used to inspire compliance with the warning are faulty. The ONDCP faced similar criticism in its drugs and terrorism advertising campaign, where the office warned that drug users were supporting terrorism through their habit. As of yet, the office has failed to produce statistics that support such a claim.

Posted by Daniel Walter at 12:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

The National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) commissioned a national Zogby Survey of 1,004 regarding marijuana regulation similar to alcohol regulation. Of those polled, nearly 50% supported such a change. Broken down by political affiliation, Libertarians led the way with 85% in support, followed by 59% of Democrats, then 44% of Independents and 33% of Republicans.

Posted by Daniel Walter at 08:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Australia's current regulations will deny an aspiring recruit from a position with the military if they admit to illegal drug usage, while those who lie are not rejected. The defense minister is considering altering this rule - which rewards dishonesty - to fill a shortfall in recruitment.

Posted by Daniel Walter at 08:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

On March 14th, the Office of National Drug Control Policy issued a warning regarding teens and drug usage over spring break. The report stresses parental involvement to prevent teens from using drugs for the first time.

Posted by Daniel Walter at 08:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (6) | TrackBacks (0)

We previously reported on popular sleeping pill Ambien's relation to auto-accidents. The pill, which is prescribed to nearly 30 million Americans, has received more press for other strange sleepwalking behaviors it causes. Apparently, some users sleepwalk to the kitchen in the middle of the night, binge on food, and then return to their beds with no recollection of what happened.

Posted by Daniel Walter at 12:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

March 13th's CESAR Fax reports on a trend in illicit use of pain medication where college-age students who were prescribed such medications earlier in life were more likely to later use those prescriptions in an illicit fashion. The likelihood of illicit use increased the earlier in user's life that the medications were prescribed; those who had received prescriptions in elementary school were the biggest abusers in adulthood.

Posted by Daniel Walter at 08:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

ABC News reported on the growing concern over binge drinking in college-age women. Females have been drinking at levels previously associated only with fraternity members. Women at the University of Wisconsin at Madison reported that they "drink to get drunk, start drinking early in the night to avoid the hassles of police sweeps and ID checks at bars, and play drinking games where it is easy to lose track of how much alcohol they've consumed." There are roughly 1,400 alcohol-related deaths on college campuses each year.

Posted by Daniel Walter at 06:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Researchers have discovered a gene variation that increases susceptibility to cocaine addiction by 50%. A protein called DAT controls dopamine removal in the brain, and individuals with two copies of this gene variation will be at a significantly higher risk for addiction after cocaine usage. The study was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences and received funding from the Medical Research Council (UK).

Posted by Daniel Walter at 06:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

To the surprise of few, marijuana does impair learning and memory. According to the University Hospital Patras, this is particularly true for heavy users, people who have frequently used marijuana for at least five years.

Posted by Eric Gorin-Regan at 04:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

A lab at UC Santa Barbara has made a breakthrough that may lead to palmtop-sized cocaine detection devices. The device has sensors that use various DNA sequences to detect cocaine in the bloodstream, and can be easily modified to sense other substances or even diseases by switching in different pieces of DNA.

Posted by Daniel Walter at 01:19 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Australia is going to start out with a new education program about marijuana that hopes to be effective by being a little more interactive. By showing smoking devices such as water bongs, the program hopes to educate kids in a way that's more hands-on.

BONGS IN SHOW AND TELL

CHILDREN as young as 10 will be shown bongs at school as part of a push to educate them about drugs.

The drug and alcohol teaching resources, which will be launched in WA schools in July for Years 4 to 7, will focus on the dangers of cannabis. Previous programs have only touched on the subject.

Education Minister Ljiljanna Ravlich has given the project the thumbs-up.

"I don't think it would be unusual for 10 and 11-year-olds to be asking their mother and father what is marijuana or ( to have ) heard it mentioned within a context by another child," she said.

"But, of course, the issue is making sure that students get the right message and the message is that no drugs are good for you."

School Drug Education and Road Aware project officer Kim Chute said there had been a push for more drug education because research showed that children were being exposed to cannabis earlier than people thought.

"That part of it will be for Year 6 and 7 and they will be taught more facts about things like the short and long-term effects of cannabis, and the illegality of it," Ms Chute said.

"( We will get ) police in as guest speakers and they might bring in little kits that have the cannabis and the bongs, and that sort of stuff, just demystifying cannabis for the kids.

"They will be told this ( bong ) is the apparatus that some people use, but it's illegal and everything to do with cannabis is still illegal, and about the effects. Basically it is not a 'Just say no' approach, it's 'Let's talk about it, let's see what it does'.

"And let's talk about some scenarios where you could be exposed to those things and how you could be exposed."

There would a big focus on developing decision-making skills which children could use to resist pressures to use cannabis, alcohol and cigarettes, or even to help them behave safely on the road.

Alcohol would be dealt with in the program at Years 4 and 5. Students would learn in high school about other illicit drugs. On Friday, another new resource pack, to help teachers of kindergarten to Year 3 students teach awareness of legal drugs and road safety, was launched at Ardross Primary School.

Key areas of the program include medicines, hazardous substances, tobacco, passive smoking, caffeine and promoting reasoning, and decision-making ability in children.

MAP posted-by: SHeath( DPF Florida )

Posted by Matt Nazareth at 08:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

After many states, especially in the Midwest, have passed legislature to restrict the meth ingredient pseudoephedrine, President Bush signs a similar bill for the nation. The new bill requires any medication containing the chemical to be sold behind the counter, puts a limit on the amount any one person can get, keeps track of who is getting how much, and gives $99 million per year for five years to local and state governments, as well as law enforcement agencies. Though this will help slow production of meth in the US, some fear increased importation to keep up with the demand. Officials have said that improvements in tracking and border enforcement should help control importation.

Posted by Matt Nazareth at 01:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

To cap off the ONDCP's recent claimed victories in its war on drugs, John Walters has participated in a public question and answer session online for which the transcript is available here. There are a number of questions regarding marijuana's health effects and relevant policies.

Posted by Daniel Walter at 02:07 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Canada's new government took a firm stance against any reevaluation of the nation's marijuana laws. A report released in 2004 found that 15% of Candians used marijuana in the previous year. A bill recently died that proposed to treat possession of less than 15 grams as an offense similar to a traffic ticket, with a $100-400 fine.

Posted by Daniel Walter at 02:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The restrictions to the sale of meth ingredients have been followed by a drop in the number of meth labs in North Dakota. This news comes as many other states recently passed similar legislation or are considering such a law.

Posted by Matt Nazareth at 11:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The New England Journal of Medicine has published an article that evaluates the power of the supreme court to choose what is appropriate for doctors to prescribe and how theyshould practice. Examples range from abortion and assisted suicide legislation to prescription of steroids for body building or psychoactive drugs for recreational purposes. The article points out a trend of the supreme court deferring to the medical profession's understanding of its purposes, including "regard for ethical pronouncements by professional organizations when construing ambiguous legal terms, reliance on professional self-regulation (through licensing boards, second opinions, and peer review) to restrain errant practitioners, and dependence on individual doctors' clinical judgments to safeguard (and balance) patients' rights and government interests."

Posted by Daniel Walter at 09:12 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

An article published by Reuters contrasts the consistently upbeat reports made by the Office of National Drug Control Policy with statistics that show how drugs like cocaine, heroin and marijuana are just as widely available today as they were 16 years ago, with cheaper prices. The article examines the "one step forward, one step back" nature of the drug war, in addition to evaluating questionable data used by the ONDCP to make its optimistic claims.

Posted by Daniel Walter at 01:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

The sleeping aid Ambien has been cited as the cause for some car accidents. It is unclear if users are simply disoriented, falling asleep at the wheel, or actually driving while sleep walking.

Posted by Daniel Walter at 07:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

A new anti-drug effort, Students Taking Action Not Drugs (STAND), is geared towards students 18-25 years of age. Students' peers distribute hardcopy materials, hoping to reach "college students by relaying drug information they can understand within their own cultural context," says the program's creative director, Peter Klaus. Drug Free America Foundation, Inc. is conducting the project.

STAND Launches One-of-a Kind Drug Prevention Campaign for College Students

U.S. Health and Human Services-Funded Initiative Uses Integrated Online/Offline Approach to Reach 18-25 Year-Olds

(St. Petersburg, FL) – STAND (Students Taking Action Not Drugs), an arm of Drug-Free America Foundation, Inc., launched its college-based drug awareness campaign this week on college campuses throughout Florida, including the University of Florida, Saint Leo University, St. Petersburg College, the University of South Florida, the University of Central Florida, Eckerd College and Santa Fe Community College. STAND uses an innovative online/offline approach to reach college students through a professionally designed communications campaign. The initiative is funded through the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

"University health professionals today lament the lack of nonpartisan, science-based, accurate drug information available to college students," Kevin Sabet, founding director of STAND, commented. "STAND hopes to fill that gap by creatively reaching college students and enabling them to make healthier decisions about drugs and alcohol."

STAND's campaigns – which are free – reach students through peer-disseminated hardcopy materials such as posters and postcards. These materials, in turn, promote STAND's cutting-edge web site that provides drug education information in various categories. The keystones of the program are its ever-shifting creative themes that prevent the STAND brand from getting stale.

"At a time when scientists and practitioners are scratching their heads as to the best way to reach this highest drug-using age group, STAND's marketing techniques appeal to college students by relaying drug information they can understand within their own cultural context," remarked Peter Klaus, STAND's Creative Director, who is an associate at the global communications firm Fleishman-Hillard.
STAND's campaigns can easily be integrated within a college or university's own peer or health education programs, or it can be implemented as an independent, student-run university club. Colleges in Florida are taking various routes to deliver STAND's message and the campaign will be expanded throughout the nation during 2006.

"The STAND campaign is a unique approach to drug education and shows strong promise," said Tavis J. Glassman, Alcohol and Other Drug Prevention Coordinator at the University of Florida. "This campaign will allow students to learn more about the hazards associated with alcohol and drug use as well as provide opportunities for student involvement in this very important health issue."

---
STAND is a project of Drug Free America Foundation, Inc. based in St. Petersburg, Florida. Drug Free America Foundation, Inc. is an international drug prevention and policy organization committed to developing, promoting and sustaining global strategies, policies and laws that will reduce illegal drug use, drug addiction, drug related injury and death.

Credit to Oxford PhD student Kevin Sabet for this story.

Posted by Daniel Walter at 05:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

National Development and Research Institutes conducted a study of trends in self-reported versus actual drug usage. 93 percent of marijuana users truthfully reported their habits, while as little as 28 percent of crack and cocaine abusers reported usage. The study was conducted by surveying subjects while testing their urine samples, then examining the disparity between reported and actual drug usage.

Posted by Daniel Walter at 05:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

60 Minutes interviewed Marc Emery, who claims to have sold more more pot seeds than anyone in the world. Emery lives in Canada, has run for mayor twice in Vancouver, and is extremely wanted in the United States. The transcript can be read here, courtesy of NORML.

Posted by Daniel Walter at 04:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police's (RCMP) new Marijuana Grow Operations Enforcement Team concluded its first operation, targeting websites that sold marijuana seeds. The operation netted 200,000 cannibus seeds and seven were arrested. The Marijuana Grow Operations Enforcement Team is one of seven created in 2004 under the RCMP to combat marijuana in Canada.

Posted by Daniel Walter at 04:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)