-
The Addictions of Philip Seymour Hoffman
Critically-acclaimed actor dies from drug overdose. That seems to be the common headline that has been circulating through the press and the media for decades – it seems as if the only thing that really changes about those particular types of headlines is the actual name of the actor involved. Sadly, the first major actor…
-
Wet Counties Have Fewer Meth Labs
Wet counties have fewer meth labs and less methamphetamine use than dry counties according to Kentucky researchers at the University of Louisville. The researchers found that Kentucky could reduce the number of methamphetamine seizures by increasing the wet (alcohol is Okay) counties. According to DecaturDaily.com, “So, to summarize, wet counties have fewer meth lab seizures…
-
Krokodil Drug Use Spreading in United States
Krokodil is an opiate with the scientific name desomorphine and is spreading across the United States at an alarming rate. Like all opiates, Krokodil stimulates the reward center of the brain and one big side effect of the drug is that it will cause users skin to rot away. It is estimated that 1 million…
-
Heroin and Meth on the Rise According to U. S. Report
The U. S. Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) has issued a report called the National Drug Threat Assessment Summary. This report states that use of heroin and methamphetamines is on the rise in the United States. According to the L. A. Times, “… the amount of heroin seized at the southern U.S. border increased 232% between…
-
Molly Club Drug No Friend to Illinois
Molly is a club drug and a more intense form of Ecstasy also known as MDMA. And recently Molly has been hitting the concert and club scene more than at any time in the past, especially in Illinois. According to CBS Local Chicago, “The pure form of the drug looks like rock crystals. They are…
-
Synthetic Marijuana Linked to Deaths
A synthetic pot probe is underway concerning three recent deaths and at least 75 hospital emergency room visits in Colorado. The fake marijuana is sold in some convenience stores in packets of herbal supplements. This herbal packets have been sprayed with chemicals that will give smokers a high. According to the Denver Post, “The CDC…
-
Singer Chaka Khan in Rehab for Prescription Drugs
A rumor has been leaking out lately that singer Chaka Khan had been in rehab for addiction to prescription medication. And she is at the same facility as Lindsay Lohan. The rumor has turned out to be accurate and the prescribed medication is painkillers for an old knee injury. According to Chaka Khan’s website on…
-
How To Make Money Selling Drugs Movie Review
How To Make Money Selling Drugs is a documentary feature film directed by Matthew Cooke who is also the writer. The movie is produced by Adrien Grenier. The documentary features rapper and actor 50 Cent along with having Susan Sarandon, Woody Harrelson and David Simon as commentators. How To Make Money Selling Drugs is a…
-
Crystal Meth Started in Nazi Germany
A recent letter reveals that crystal meth, sold under the name Pervitin, was actually consumed by Nazi soldiers in Germany to promote alertness during the war. According to Spiegel Online, “The young soldier, though, needed more of the drug, much more. He was exhausted by the war, becoming “cold and apathetic, completely without interests,” as…
-
Convenience Stores Saying No to Bath Salts
Here’s a common sense story that shows a grass roots movement to educate convenience store owners about the dangers that bath salts pose to the community. While Ohio is in the process of making bath salts (the ones that people are using to get a drug high) illegal, other communities have turned to education. According…
-
Stimulating Prefrontal Cortex in Brain May Help Cocaine Addicts
Scientists at the National Institute for Health (NIH) and at the University of California in San Francisco teamed up to use lasers to help the cravings on cocaine-addicted lab rats. The technique known as optogenetic stimulation reduced the cravings of severely addicted rats. According to GovExec.com, “The researchers studied rats that were chronically addicted to…
-
Heroin and Cocaine Treatments Work in the UK
A recent study shows that heroin and cocaine treatment is working in the UK, reducing users and reducing trips to rehab. Since the National Treatment Agency for Substance Misuse (NTA) has been tracking the number of cocaine and heroin users in Great Britain, the number has now fallen below 300,000 for the first time ever.…
-
Meth Ring Broken in San Diego
A methamphetamine ring that also trafficked cocaine was broken up this past week in San Diego, California. According to UT San Diego, “Twelve of the defendants were arrested on Wednesday, officials said. Seven are from Vista; two are from San Marcos; and the other three are from Oceanside, Spring Valley and Los Angeles. “One defendant…
-
Toddler Dies of Meth Overdose
In what seems to be an unintended consequence of methamphetamine use, a toddler died in Spanaway, Washington. No arrests have yet been made. According to the News Tribune of Tacoma, Washington, “Residents of the house admitted to authorities after the death that they used drugs, Troyer said. He said there were no signs of drugs…
-
California Rogue Pharmacists Feeding Addictions
California rogue pharmacists are teaming up with rogue doctors in over dispensing prescription medications to addicts. A number of deaths have occurred as a result. According to the L. A. Times, “Rogue pharmacists have a symbiotic relationship with physicians who prescribe drugs for addicts. Neither can flourish without the other. “Their cooperation is usually unplanned.…
-
Bath Salts Drugs on Chopping Block in Ohio
Makers of synthetic drugs and packaged them as bath salts may now get stiffer penalties in Ohio. Attorney General Mike DeWine wants to go after the makers, sellers and users of so-called bath salts which in effect if ingested act like a hit of both methamphetamines and hallucinogens. According to the Columbus Dispatch, “Ohio has…
-
Red Ribbon Week 2012
Red Ribbon Week 2012 runs from October 23 – 31. I’ve talked about Red Ribbon Week several times in the past starting in 2007. Last year there was a contest in which students could win an iPad2 for themselves and $1,000 for their schools. There is another contest this year held by the National Family…
-
Illegal Drugs for Sale on the Internet
I went back and forth in my head about whether or not to blog about this. And then I decided that since an Atlanta news outlet had already talked about illegal drugs for sale on the Internet, (on the Internet and elsewhere) with video and text description that basically the cat was already out of…
-
Colombia’s Queen of Cocaine Killed
Griselda Blanco, 69, was also known in Colombia as the “Queen of Cocaine.” Blanco was killed by two gunshot wounds at close range. According to CNN, “Witnesses heard the roar of a motorcycle and two gunshots Monday afternoon, Medellin police spokesman Diego Chavarria said. By the time authorities arrived at the scene in Belen, a…
-
Two Drug Cocktail to Treat Cocaine Addiction
Two drugs currently being used for other purposes are now being tested in humans to treat cocaine addiction. Buprenorphine and naltrexone together have researchers excited that they have found a real treatment for cocaine and possibly meth addictions as well. According to Time.com, “That complication precluded the possibility of testing buprenorphine on its own in…