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The best executive is the one who has sense enough to pick good men to do what he wants done, and self-restraint enough to keep from meddling with them while they do it. ~Theodore Roosevelt

Prescription drug abuse in West Virginia has increased 300 percent in the past ten years. More than 60 percent of prescription drug abusers say that family and friends are helping further their addiction. Experts believe that the sharing culture in West Virginia is the real reason for the exponential rise in drug abuse.

“Eleven percent of West Virginians who have used pain relievers nonmedically, meaning outside the boundaries of what they were prescribed for, said they got their last used pain reliever from a doctor. The percent who got it from a friend or relative for free was 64 percent compared to 57 percent nationally,” said Dr. Andy Whisman, a senior evaluation specialist with the West Virginia Prevention Resource Center. “We also see another 7.6 percent who reported buying them from a friend or relative.”

There have been more than 400 overdose deaths, of which 93.2 percent in 2006 involved prescription pain medication. This, and the 300 percent statistic, have prompted the West Virginia Partnership to Promote Community Well-Being and the West Virginia Prevention Resource Center to launch the “Take Care WV” campaign targeted at educating people about sharing prescription medication.

“We do believe that a lot of people don’t realize sharing prescription drugs is illegal, dangerous and just as deadly as street drugs,” said Michele Burnside with the West Virginia Prevention Resource Center.

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When one bases his life on principle, 99 percent of his decisions are already made. ~Author Unknown

One county in Colorado has experienced an alarming increase in deaths from drug overdoses. Larimer County deaths have been primarily from prescription drugs.

One area physician believes that the face of those addicted to and dying from prescription drugs is changing.

“This is your soccer mom and your 48-year-old lawyer and your 58-year-old HOA member,” said Dr. Jeremy Dubin, a family practitioner. “This is not your homeless heroin addict that we’re talking about.”
From 2000 to 2006, there was an average of five people each year in Larimer County who died from an overdose where an opiate was the primary cause of death.

Since 2007, there has been an average of 27 deaths per year due to opiates like OxyContin, Percocet and Vicodin. The Larmer County Coroner’s Office said most overdose deaths are the result of a combination of alcohol and either prescription or illegal drugs. The reported data reflects the primary drug of abuse at the time of death.

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In trying to get our own way, we should remember that kisses are sweeter than whine. ~Author Unknown

Officials in Minnesota said that they believe five people became sick after using cocaine tainted with an anti-worm medication used by veterinarians. Levamisole was confirmed in three of the cases and suspected in two others. Two of the people with confirmed cases later died, though health officials said both patients had other medical issues.

According to Carol Falkowski, director of the alcohol and drug abuse division for the Minnesota Department of Human Services, this is the first time tainted cocaine has been found in Minnesota. Levamisole lowers white blood cell counts, making people more vulnerable to infections. Symptoms can include fever and darkened or dead-looking skin.

The victims in Minnesota ranged in age from 25 to 60. Falkowski said the anti-worm medication is cheap, and easily accessible in South America, where much of the cocaine originates from. Levamisole is added to cocaine to dilute it and increase the volume of cocaine.

“People cannot tell by looking at the cocaine or tasting the cocaine if it has this levamisole contamination in it,” Falkowski said. “People who’ve used cocaine should watch for possible infections that don’t get better.”

As of July 2009, the United States Drug Enforcement Administration found levamisole in 69 percent of cocaine entering the country. In April of 2008, levamisole was linked to neutropenia, or low white blood cell counts in users in New Mexico. Falkowski said that state agencies will work together to figure out if any cocaine seized by law enforcement contains levamisole.

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The most important thing in communication is to hear what isn’t being said. ~Peter F. Drucker

Recent information from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) show that excessive drinking is responsible for about 79,000 deaths each year. Binge drinking is responsible for more than half of those deaths. A new study examines the frequency of binge drinking in relation to drinkers’ own perceptions of their overall health. Binge drinkers have a 13 to 23 percent greater likelihood of self-reporting suboptimal health status.

“Self-rated health is a single question that has been used by many national and international health surveys to measure participants’ perception of their overall health status,” said James Tsai, a CDC epidemiologist and corresponding author of the study.

“Binge drinking – defined as four or more drinks per occasion for a woman, and five or more drinks per occasion for a man – is a dangerous pattern of alcohol consumption that is associated with a wide range of health and social problems in the U.S., including car crashes, violence, STDs, and unintended pregnancies,” said Robert D. Brewer, alcohol program leader at the CDC.

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Teamwork is so important that it is virtually impossible for you to reach the heights of your capabilities or make the money that you want without becoming very good at it. ~Brian Tracy

According to a study from Australia, one in three women drinks alcohol while pregnant or breastfeeding, despite being cognizant of the potential dangers to their unborn child. Research from the Alcohol Education and Rehabilitation Foundation reveals that many women ignore the dangers of drinking while pregnant.

About 90 percent of Australians believe alcohol should be avoided while a woman is pregnant or breastfeeding. Despite the knowledge of these dangers, 30 percent of Australian women admit to drinking while pregnant or breastfeeding. About one in 10 Australians think it is okay to drink in moderation while pregnant or breastfeeding.

Alcohol use during pregnancy is linked to fetal alcohol syndrome, an incurable condition associated with stunted growth, physical abnormalities and brain damage. Fetal alcohol syndrome is the leading cause of preventable, non-genetic intellectual disability.

“The whole issue about fetal alcohol syndrome is it’s 100 pefcent preventable – don’t consume alcohol while pregnant,” said Scott Wilson, deputy chair of the Alcohol Education and Rehabilitation Foundation.

“If you choose to have one or two while you’re pregnant, you are, to a certain extent, playing Russian roulette.”

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The person who really wants to do something finds a way; the other person finds an excuse. ~Author Unknown

One in five high school students have abused prescription drugs like OxyContin and Percocet. A study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that Caucasian teenagers were the most likely to admit they had abused prescription medication. Twenty three percent said they had used drugs like Xanax, Ritalin, Percocet or OxyContin, without a prescription from a physician.

Seventeen percent of Hispanic teenagers said they had abused prescription drugs. Twelve percent of African-Americans teens admitted to abusing the drugs.

The CDC study was conducted in 2009 and 16,000 high school students were questioned for the study. Almost 75 percent of teens have also used alcohol, 37 percent have used marijuana, 6 percent have used cocaine and 4 percent have used methamphetamine.

“Some people may falsely believe that prescription drugs are safer than illegal drugs, yet their misuse can cause serious adverse health effects, including addiction and death,” said Howell Wechsler, the CDC’s division of adolescent and school health director.

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Never do anything that you wouldn’t want to explain to the paramedics. ~Author Unknown

A study from Nova Southeastern University found that 80 percent of poker players around the world reported using drugs and other substances to enhance their game performance. Poker players are using marijuana, cocaine, amphetamines, Valium, and other prescription medications, as well as caffeine, energy drinks and guarana to step up their game.

“The use of these substances could allow poker players to stay awake longer, as well as focus and concentrate better, which would be a competitive advantage,” said Kevin Clauson, Pharm.D., an associate professor at Nova Southeastern University’s College of Pharmacy and the lead investigator of the study.

Using these substances can be addictive for the poker players. The NSU researchers first interviewed players in Las Vegas during the World Series of Poker and then surveyed players online from around the world.

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Fish is the only food that is considered spoiled once it smells like what it is. ~PJ O’Rourke

A new report revealed that British taxpayers are paying 44 million pounds a year to fund the drug habits of jailed addicts. The Labour Party’s lenient policy on drug addiction in prisons is said to be the cause of the problem. It introduced the Integrated Drug Treatment System (IDTS) which used methadone as a replacement drug. The policy was not successful and created drug trade among inmates.

“Perversely, the massive increase in opiate-substitute medication has created a new kind of trade for drugs in prisons, as methadone and buprenorphine are readily traded among inmates,” said Max Chambers, the author of the report from Policy Exchange, a think tank in Britain.

The report revealed that maintenance prescriptions, which involve a stable dose, often continued indefinitely, are not being inappropriately prescribed.

“The IDTS is being brought in across prisons to provide evidence-basesd treatment tailored to suit the needs of the offender. It is currently the subject of a rigorous and extensive four-year prison research program,” said a spokesman for the British Department of Health.

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Fear only loneliness, for when we are alone things become much scarier.
Shane O’Neill

Journalist Ted Koppel’s son Andrew died in New York City on Tuesday after a daylong drinking binge. Koppel, 40, was an attorney for the city’s Housing Authority. He was found unconscious and not breathing in an apartment in the Washington Heights section of Manhattan.

Koppel lived in Queens with his girlfriend and baby daughter. He began drinking around noon at a bar in Hell’s Kitchen where he made friends with 32-year-old waiter Russell Wimberly. The two drank all day. Koppel was drinking straight whiskey. Koppel and Wimberly arrived at the Washington Heights apartment around 11 p.m. Koppel complained of not feeling well and Wimberly and a roommate, Belinda Caban, put him to bed. Later, they discovered he was not breating and called the paramedics.

The official cause of death will be determined by the medical examiner.

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If you would lift me up you must be on higher ground.

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

A marked increase in deaths related to drug overdoses in the last four years have been registered in Russia. According to Russian health care authorities, the death rate from drug overdoses has risen more than five times, while lethal poisoning from psychotropic drugs rose 85 percent, from illicit drugs by 68 percent, and from alcohol 44 percent.

Russian health officials insist that the real numbers surpass the official data by seven times, because many drug users did not report their addiction.

Russia has been seriously affected by the production of opium-related drugs in Afghanistan. An estimated 90 percent of heroin consumed in Russia is believed to have been trafficked from Afghanistan via Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.

According to the Federal Drug Control Service, Afghan heroin kills about 30,000 people each year in Russia.

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