In recent months, newspaper headlines across the country have alerted Americans to an emerging problem threatening health: prescription drug abuse. Here in Chicago, emergency room mentions for prescription drugs have risen by 56 percent from 2000 to 2002, above the national average. As the number of people using these drugs non-medically increases, physicians have begun to educate themselves and their peers about the dangers. But even more basic than prescription drug abuse is the issue of physician detection of potential misuse of prescription medication and addiction. [continues 678 words]
When I addressed an audience of fifth-graders at Beachland Elementary school in February, I was heartened by the response I received. One child wrote, "I learned that drugs are very, very harmful. I know that I'll never do drugs." Another penned, "I will make a promise that I will not take drugs. I learned a lot from you." But that isn't the only valuable lesson these students will learn in their educational careers. One of the most important lessons they will inevitably learn involves the adage, "consider the source." [continues 700 words]
YES: It Reverses the Spread of Addiction Today in Atlanta, concerned parents will meet with regional school officials, drug prevention specialists and student assistance professionals to discuss the promise of a powerful new tool to fight drug use among America's youth. Building on the 11 percent decline in teen drug use America has witnessed in the past two years, random student drug testing -- locally controlled, nonpunitive and designed to get help for those in trouble -- can help consolidate and further our progress. [continues 500 words]
Last November, the Oregon chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws sponsored the Oregon Medical Cannabis Awards--its own version of the town chili cook-off. For a small fee, state-licensed "medical marijuana" growers could enter their homegrown marijuana to be judged in a best-in-show competition. For a little more money, licensed "medical marijuana" patients could judge the samples themselves. Even children--with a note from a parent, of course--could participate as judges. The very nature of the event exposes medical marijuana opportunists for what they are: people who are looking for the best high, not the best medicine that science has to offer. [continues 469 words]
As a physician with more than 20 years of experience in dealing with patients who are addicted to drugs, I am often asked my professional opinion about a contentious public health question: what is the medical basis for smoking marijuana? The answer needs some context. Americans today have the world's safest and most effective system of medical practice, built on a process of scientific research, testing, and oversight that is unequaled. Before the passage of the Pure Food and Drug Act in 1907, Americans were exposed to a host of patent medicine "cure-alls," everything from vegetable "folk remedies" to dangerous mixtures with morphine. The major component of most "cures" was alcohol, which probably explained why people reported that they "felt better." [continues 562 words]
Smoking This Plant Does Not Qualify As Medicine As a physician with more than 20 years of experience dealing with patients who are addicted to drugs, I am often asked my professional opinion about a contentious public health question: What is the medical basis for smoking marijuana? The answer needs some context. Americans today have the world's safest, most effective system of medical practice, built on a process of scientific research, testing and oversight that is unequaled. Before the passage of the Pure Food and Drug Act in 1907, Americans were exposed to a host of patent medicine "cure-alls," everything from vegetable "folk remedies" to dangerous mixtures with morphine. [continues 580 words]
As a physician with more than 20 years of experience dealing with patients who are addicted to drugs, I am often asked my professional opinion about a contentious public health question: What is the medical basis for smoking marijuana? The answer needs some context. Americans today have the world's safest, most effective system of medical practice, built on a process of scientific research, testing and oversight that is unequaled. Before the passage of the Pure Food and Drug Act in 1907, Americans were exposed to a host of patent medicine "cure-alls," everything from vegetable "folk remedies" to dangerous mixtures with morphine. [continues 580 words]
As a physician with more than 20 years of experience dealing with patients addicted to drugs, I am often asked about a contentious public health question: What is the medical basis for smoking marijuana? The answer needs some context. North Americans today have the world's safest, most effective system of medical practice, built on a process of scientific research, testing and oversight that is unequalled. Before passage of the Pure Food and Drug Act in 1907, Americans were exposed to a host of patent medicine "cure-alls," from vegetable "folk remedies" to dangerous mixtures with morphine. The major component of most "cures" was alcohol, which probably explained why people reported they "felt better." [continues 502 words]
As a physician with more than 20 years of experience dealing with patients who are addicted to drugs, I am often asked my professional opinion about a contentious public health question: What is the medical basis for smoking marijuana? The answer needs some context. Americans today have the world's safest, most effective system of medical practice, built on a process of scientific research, testing and oversight that is unequaled. Before the passage of the Pure Food and Drug Act in 1907, Americans were exposed to a host of patent medicine "cure-alls," everything from vegetable "folk remedies" to dangerous mixtures with morphine. The major component of most "cures" was alcohol, which probably explained why people reported that they "felt better." [continues 569 words]
